Review: The Crucible (1996)

Title: The Crucible
Year: 1996
Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Winona Ryder, Paul Scofield, Joan Allen
Genres: Drama, Historical
MPAA: PG-13 for intense depiction of the Salem witch trials
Kids-In-Mind.com: 4.3.2
My Rating: 6.0
Up or Down: Thumb Down
IMDb Rating: 6.9

Synopsis: In 1692, after being dismissed from the service of John (Day-Lewis) and Elizabeth (Allen) Proctor for having an affair with the former, Abigail Williams (Ryder) begins accusing women in the small town of Salem, Massachusetts of witchcraft. Eventually accusing Elizabeth so John could be hers, a witchcraft frenzy spreads through the town, leading to the execution of dozens, as ordered by the Royal Governor, Thomas Danforth (Scofield).

My Take: Daniel Day-Lewis is a superb actor. Winona Ryder's performance was, too, very good. However, this film's downfall is its awful screenplay. The play is a good read; Arthur Miller's allegory of the McCarthy hearings is a good read. However, the poor screenplay makes for some really odd filming and weird dialogue. The acting, once again, is certainly above average, but I have to give this a negative rating due to the absolute atrocity that is the screenplay.

Concerning the rating: The 6.0 puts "The Crucible" in a tie for 150th of 162 films rated. It is tied with the 1987 comedy "Spaceballs" as well as the 2008 teen comedy "Drillbit Taylor".

Have a film you'd like me to see and review? E-mail me at richard@movienightreviews.net.