The Scarlet Letter (1995 film)

The Scarlet Letter
File:Scarletlettermovieposter.jpg Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Roland Joffé
Produced by	Andrew G. Vajna
Screenplay by	Douglas Day Stewart
Based on	The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Starring	Demi Moore Gary Oldman Robert Duvall Edward Hardwicke Robert Prosky Joan Plowright
Music by	John Barry
Cinematography	Alex Thomson
Edited by	Thom Noble
Production company	Hollywood Pictures Cinergi Pictures
Distributed by	Buena Vista Pictures
Release dates	October 13, 1995 (1995-10-13)
Running time	135 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$46 million
Box office	$10,382,407

The Scarlet Letter is a 1995 American romantic drama film. It is a film adaptation of the Nathaniel Hawthorne novel of the same name. It was directed by Roland Joffé and stars Demi Moore, Gary Oldman, and Robert Duvall. This version was "freely adapted" from Hawthorne and deviated from the original story. It was nominated for seven Golden Raspberry Awards at the 1995 ceremony, winning "Worst Remake or Sequel."

Plot

It is 1667 in the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and an uneasy truce exists between local Puritans and their neighbours, the Algonquian. Chief Metacomet (Eric Schweig) succeeds his father Massasoit as head of the latter just as a new colonist, Hester Prynne (Demi Moore) arrives overseas from England. As Hester waits for her husband - who is due to follow shortly after - she falls for a young minister, Arthur Dimmesdale (Gary Oldman). When it emerges that Roger Prynne has likely been killed by Native Americans, they become inseparable lovers.

Finding herself pregnant with Dimmesdale's child, Hester is imprisoned for her indiscretion. The minister intends to declare his sin and face execution, but Hester convinces him otherwise. Sentenced to wear a scarlet "A" for adultery, Prynne is ostracized by the public, and a drummer boy charged to follow her whenever she comes to town. Meanwhile, Hester's husband (Robert Duvall) resurfaces, having spent his absence in captivity as a prisoner of war. Learning of the scandal, he adopts the fictitious guise of "Dr. Roger Chillingworth" and begins seeking out her paramour.

The physician eventually murders a male settler leaving Hester's home and scalps him in an effort to implicate Algonquian warriors. Infuriated by this atrocity, the colonists declare war on the Indians and Roger, distraught by the severe consequences of his action, promptly commits suicide. Hester is nearly hanged with other undesirables in the ensuing outrage, but Dimmesdale saves her neck by confessing that he is the father of her child. As he takes her place on the gallows, the Algonquian attack Massachusetts Bay; both sides sustain heavy casualties. The Puritans are more concerned with concealing the conflict from England than harassing Hester any further; she finally abandons her scarlet letter and departs with Dimmesdale for Carolina.

Cast

• Demi Moore as Hester Prynne
• Gary Oldman as Rev. Arthur Dimmesdale
• Robert Duvall as Roger Prynne/ Roger Chillingworth
• Edward Hardwicke as John Bellingham
• Robert Prosky as Horace Stonehall
• Roy Dotrice as Rev. Thomas Cheever
• Joan Plowright as Harriet Hibbons
• Larissa Laskin as Goody Mortimer
• Amy Wright as Goody Gotwick
• George Aguilar as Johnny Sassamon
• Tim Woodward as Brewster Stonehall
• Dana Ivey as Meredith Stonehall
• Sheldon Peters Wolfchild as Moskeegee
• Eric Schweig as Metacomet
• Kristin Fairlie as Faith Stonehall
• Sarah Campbell as Prudence Stonehall
• Kennetch Charlette as Tarratine Chief
• Jodhi May as Voice of Pearl
  • Tallulah Belle Willis as Pearl (infant)
  • Scout LaRue Willis as Toddler Pearl

Production

File:Shelburnecountymuseum.jpg

Shelburne, Nova Scotia waterfront showing grey paint finishes applied for the 1995 film.

The film was shot in British Columbia on Vancouver Island, in and around Campbell River (Beaverlodge Lands—now Rockland Road and North Island College/Timberline Secondary, Lupin Falls and Myra Falls in Strathcona Provincial Park, Little Oyster River, and White River), and in the Nova Scotia towns of Yarmouth and Shelburne in 1994. In Shelburne, the waterfront area was substantially altered to resemble a Puritan New England town in the mid-17th century. Some of the buildings on Dock Street retain the grey-tone paint finishes used for the film.

Score

Three original scores were written for this film. The first score was composed by Ennio Morricone and was quickly rejected. A second score was composed by Elmer Bernstein, but his music was set aside in lieu of the final score, composed by John Barry. Reportedly, star Demi Moore wanted a score by Barry from the start, so Morricone's and Bernstein's music were not going to be accepted, regardless of quality.

Barry's score was released on CD by Sony Records upon the film's release in 1995. A CD of Bernstein's rejected score was released by Varèse Sarabande in 2008. No recordings of Morricone's score have been released to the public.

Reception

The film drew negative reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a 14% approval rating, based on 35 reviews. It won the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Remake or Sequel and was nominated for Worst Actress for Demi Moore (lost to Elizabeth Berkley for Showgirls), Worst Director for Roland Joffe (lost to Paul Verhoeven for Showgirls), Worst Picture (also lost to Showgirls), Worst Screen Couple for Moore and either Robert Duvall or Gary Oldman (also lost to Showgirls), Worst Screenplay (also lost to Showgirls) and Worst Supporting Actor for Duvall (lost to Dennis Hopper for Waterworld). It grossed $10.3 million against a production budget of $46 million.

In response to the negative criticism, and to the new ending, Demi Moore said that the story the filmmakers were trying to tell differed out of necessity with that of the book, which she said was "very dense and not cinematic". She noted the original story might be better suited to a miniseries on television, and that the story presented in this film needed a different ending, one that did not lose "the ultimate message of Hester Prynne" that its makers were trying to convey.

See also

• The Scarlet Letter – the original novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne
• Easy A

External links

• The Scarlet Letter at IMDb
• The Scarlet Letter at Box Office Mojo
• San Francisco Chronicle review
• Reading Hawthorne in a gender-biased academy (refers to this film version)