The Hard Man is a 52 minute documentary which was made in 1995 about a man called Michael Kelly who is a former criminal from the Southhill area of Limerick City, Ireland. The film examines the social environment from which Kelly emerged and highlights the key role alcohol played in guiding Kelly down the path of violence and crime.

After having wasted 17 years of his life going in and our of correctional facilities, Kelly was eventually able to somewhat redeem himself through his friendship with local curate Fr. Joe Young and his partner Majella Hanlon. During the making of this film Kelly was also successfully running a security business and dedicating much of his time to training local Limerick youth to play football. He saw this as a means to keep them from following the same life of crime he did.