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The Scarlet Letter

Play trailer Poster for The Scarlet Letter R Released Oct 13, 1995 2h 15m Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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13% Tomatometer 38 Reviews 41% Popcornmeter 10,000+ Ratings
After a young widow (Demi Moore) has a child and refuses to name the father, a Puritan community forces her to wear the letter A, for adulteress.
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The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter

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Critics Consensus

The Scarlet Letter strays far from its classic source material to tell a story that strains for steamy sensuality and leaves the audience red with unintentional laughter.

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Critics Reviews

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David Ansen Newsweek ... hilariously wrongheaded. Feb 1, 2018 Full Review Carol Buckland CNN.com Oldman scores a few points as Dimmsdale, but he's ultimately undone by the muttonheaded script. It doesn't help that his character's been turned into a kind of angsty hippie-dippie dude. Jan 5, 2018 Full Review Owen Gleiberman Entertainment Weekly Rated: C Sep 7, 2011 Full Review Quentin Curtis Independent on Sunday Hawthorne's moral seriousness gets lost in a sea of slush. Dec 12, 2017 Full Review Charles Cassady Common Sense Media Slaughter, sin, and sex in classic-turned-movie misfire. Rated: 1/5 Nov 16, 2010 Full Review Maitland McDonagh TV Guide Rage, love, defiance, confusion, fear -- Moore just sticks out her chin and makes her eyes brim with tears. She's the stolidly immovable object at the film's center, and there's no getting around her. Rated: 1.5/4 Aug 4, 2009 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Shioka O I don't know the original story, and I was mostly confused thinking what is the focus of this. There is moral issue because of the period. All in all, this is about sin, and this is a sin. and maybe I have hugely biased by the poor review. There are some famously low rated films and this is one of them, like; Heaven's Gate, Ishtar, Revolution. Demi Moore (is her voice ok?) and Gary Oldman are apparently in their prime time. This also has Robert Duvall. and some scene were just sad to watch. Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 12/06/22 Full Review nilufer e It's a classic book that I haven't read but I did enjoy the movie. I had really low expectations because of the critics but it wasn't all bad. It's a solid story and a good effort. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member This movie is based on the book by Nathaniel Hawthorne by the same name, regarding the Puritan era. Demi Moore stars in this drama, as she transforms her "A" for adulteress (falling in love with a preacher and consummating the forbidden relationship with sexual intercourse) into "angel" by the end of the book. As I recall, the preacher was not equally punished for his sin. Women today are still often viewed as the "gatekeepers" regarding sexual activity, seen negatively, while a sexually active male is seen as a "stud." While there are many possible consequences to sexual activity, today there is more of a Pharisee type attitude toward even childhood sexual abuse survivors, who, being failed by their parent/s and society, such as the state, were not allowed even boundaries over their own bodies as children. While this can result in what some have called a "Madonna/Whore Complex," with reactions to sex going to one extreme or the other, those who are ignorant of such violation, or in denial themselves, rather than dealing with their own "baggage," often stand in judgment as these survivors invest sometimes years of gutwrenching work in order to recover and go on to have much healthier sex lives, as well as other boundaries in their lives. Of course, when serious boundary work begins, it is often those who were benefiting from such weak boundaries, resulting from childhood abuse, who will be the first to object. Of course, there are also those who were not violated as children, who simply choose to become promiscuous. Always note, without comparison, that even one serious boundary violation by a parent is an enormous violation of trust. These predators are sending another message to children, that their value is in their sexual desirability, rather than they were created in the image of God. This is the same message #fangrockers overtly assert. Note this commentary is issued by a fully recovered, many years ago, childhood sexual abuse survivor and advocate, not a licensed mental health professional. Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/12/23 Full Review steve d Terrible adaptation that keeps losing track of its story. Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review Audience Member Absolutely terrible. My actual least favorite movie of all time. That is quite the achievement: I watch a lot of rly bad movies Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 01/17/23 Full Review Audience Member Loved the movie! I don't care whether or not it follows the original book by Nathaniel Hawthorne. It is simply a movie that says it is freely adapted from that book from the very beginning. I think Oldman, as always, does an outstanding job and unlike others who have criticized Moore's acting in this movie, I think she also did an outstanding job as well of course as Robert Duvall. I love historical dramas, and especially historical dramas with romance in them, and Oldman and more are definitely sizzling in this adaptation of The Scarlet Letter. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/14/23 Full Review Read all reviews
The Scarlet Letter

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Cast & Crew

Firelight 41% 82% Firelight Watchlist Dangerous Minds 34% 64% Dangerous Minds Watchlist One Good Cop 14% 36% One Good Cop Watchlist The Joy Luck Club 86% 89% The Joy Luck Club Watchlist Dead Presidents 49% 78% Dead Presidents Watchlist Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis After a young widow (Demi Moore) has a child and refuses to name the father, a Puritan community forces her to wear the letter A, for adulteress.
Director
Roland Joffé
Producer
Roland Joffé, Andrew G. Vajna
Screenwriter
Nathaniel Hawthorne, Douglas Day Stewart
Distributor
Buena Vista Pictures, Hollywood Pictures Home Video
Production Co
Moving Pictures, Cinergi Pictures Entertainment, Hollywood Pictures
Rating
R
Genre
Drama
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 13, 1995, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 1, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA)
$10.4M
Runtime
2h 15m
Sound Mix
Surround
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