Brian McKenna was born on 8 August 1945 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was a director and writer, known for The Great War (2007), Chiefs (2002) and Fire and Ice: The Rocket Richard Riot (2000). He was married to Susan Purcell and Anne Lagace Dowson. He died on 5 May 2023 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
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Biography from IMDb.
- August 8, 1945 (81)
- Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- Director, writer and producer
- 6 on Motif · 16 credits in all
What are Brian McKenna's films like?
Across their 6 Motif titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Morality and Society.
Themes
What they feel like to watch
Ironic 0 · Wry 0 · Earnest 3
A split, not a type: Light 0 · Serious 2 · Dark 1
Grounded 2 · Stylized 1 · Heightened 0
Gentle 0 · Charged 3 · Intense 0
Steady 2 · Shifting 1 · Whiplash 0
Straight-faced 3 · Some laughs 0 · Funny 0
Slow burn 3 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0
Casual 0 · Engaged 3 · Full focus 0
Easy watch 0 · Affecting 2 · Heavy 1
Resolved 2 · Open-ended 1 · Ambiguous 0
Moods and endings
- Bittersweet3
- Ambiguous3
AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.
Where can I watch Brian McKenna's films?
As of October 24, 2026, all 6 Motif titles stream on a subscription or free service, most on Tubi (6).
- A Web of War (1996) · director · free
- Chiefs (2002) · director, writer · free
- Fire and Ice: The Rocket Richard Riot (2000) · director, writer · free
- War of 1812 (1999) · director, writer · free
- The Valour and the Horror (1992) · director, writer, producer · free
- The Great War (2007) · director, writer, producer · free
Subscription and free streaming for Brian McKenna's titles on Motif; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Motif score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.
Filmography
16 credits, 6 with a Motif page.
Newfoundland at Armageddon (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2016)
The Secret World of Gold (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2013)
Battlefield Quebec: Wolfe & Montcalm (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2009)
The Great War(2007)
Motif score: 57th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
Big Sugar (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2005)
Chiefs(2002)
Motif score: 79th percentile of all shows (provisional, few ratings)
Motif score: 65th percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
War of 1812(1999)
Motif score: 63rd percentile of all shows
A Web of War(1996)
Motif score: 81st percentile of all films (provisional, few ratings)
In Desperate Battle: Normandy 1944 (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1992)
Death by Moonlight: Bomber Command (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1992)
A Savage Christmas: The Fall of Hong Kong (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1992)
Motif score: 63rd percentile of all shows (provisional, few ratings)
Soldier's Revenge (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1986)
Gary Carter Visits Japan (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1983)
Pierre Elliott Trudeau: Memoirs (not in the Motif catalog yet)
Career shape
A full career of 16 titles, 15 of them dated from 1983 to 2016.
Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Motif score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on Motif, shown from 5 scored.
How do Brian McKenna's films land?
Their typical Motif film has a Motif score in the 65th percentile, the median of all 3; across a limited sample of 3 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 57th percentile for acclaim.
- 75th and up2
- 50th to 74th4
Shape of the crowd
2 of their 6 titles are Divisive.
- Divisive2
- Crowd Pleaser2
- Mixed2
Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on Motif; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Motif score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their Motif titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.
Who does Brian McKenna work with?
People who share at least 2 of Brian McKenna's Motif titles, grouped by what they did on them; Arnie Gelbart shares the most, 5.
Writers
- Terence McKennaShared titles: War of 1812 (1999), A Web of War (1996), The Valour and the Horror (1992)See all 3 shared titles with Terence McKenna
Actors
- Arthur HoldenShared titles: The Great War (2007), Chiefs (2002)See all 2 shared titles with Arthur Holden
- Paul StewartShared titles: The Great War (2007), Fire and Ice: The Rocket Richard Riot (2000)See all 2 shared titles with Paul Stewart
- Billy MerastyShared titles: Chiefs (2002), War of 1812 (1999)See all 2 shared titles with Billy Merasty
- Raoul Max TrujilloShared titles: Chiefs (2002), War of 1812 (1999)See all 2 shared titles with Raoul Max Trujillo
Composers, cinematographers and editors
- Lance NeveuShared titles: The Great War (2007), Chiefs (2002), Fire and Ice: The Rocket Richard Riot (2000), War of 1812 (1999)See all 4 shared titles with Lance Neveu
- Alfonso PecciaShared titles: Chiefs (2002), Fire and Ice: The Rocket Richard Riot (2000), The Valour and the Horror (1992)See all 3 shared titles with Alfonso Peccia
- Stefan NitoslawskiShared titles: Chiefs (2002), Fire and Ice: The Rocket Richard Riot (2000), War of 1812 (1999)See all 3 shared titles with Stefan Nitoslawski
Producers
- Arnie GelbartShared titles: The Great War (2007), Chiefs (2002), Fire and Ice: The Rocket Richard Riot (2000), A Web of War (1996), The Valour and the Horror (1992)See all 5 shared titles with Arnie Gelbart
