Ryan's Daughter
Encyclopedia
Ryan's Daughter is a 1970 film directed by David Lean
. The film, set in 1916, tells the story of a married Irish
woman who has an affair with a British
officer during World War I
, despite opposition from her nationalist neighbours. The film is a very loose adaptation of Gustave Flaubert
's novel Madame Bovary
.
The film stars Robert Mitchum
, Sarah Miles
, John Mills
, Christopher Jones
, Trevor Howard
and Leo McKern
, with a score by Maurice Jarre
. It was photographed in Super Panavision 70
by Freddie Young
.
In its initial release, Ryan's Daughter was harshly received by critics and was a box office failure in the United States (it did make a profit through overseas earnings). However, it ended up winning two Academy Awards
.
in Ireland
during World War I
. Rosy Ryan (Sarah Miles
) is bored with her humdrum life and fantasizes about the outside world — much to the chagrin of the local priest, Father Hugh Collins (Trevor Howard
), an old, sharp-witted and highly influential person who knows all that goes on in the village. Rosy falls in love with the local schoolmaster, Charles Shaughnessy (Robert Mitchum
). She imagines, though he tries to convince her otherwise, that he will add excitement to her life. They marry, and Rosy quickly becomes discontented.
The villagers are nationalist
and exclusionary, taunting Michael (John Mills
) (the village idiot
) and British soldiers from a nearby army base. They are resentful of Rosy, the spoilt daughter of the local publican Tom Ryan (Leo McKern
). Ryan pretends to be a staunch nationalist– in an early scene, he strongly supports the recently suppressed Easter Rising
, referring to the rebels as "our boys"– but in truth he is an informer for the British.
Major Randolph Doryan (Christopher Jones
) arrives to take command of the local army base. A veteran of World War I
, he has been awarded a Victoria Cross
, but has a crippled leg and suffers from shell shock
. Rosy is instantly and passionately attracted to him. Michael's absent-minded banging of his leg on the pub bench causes Doryan to flashback to the trenches. He collapses. When he recovers, he is comforted by Rosy. The two passionately kiss until they are interrupted by the arrival of Ryan and the townspeople. The next day, the two meet in the forest for a 'gauzy', passionate liaison.
Charles becomes suspicious of Rosy, but keeps his thoughts to himself. While on a trip to the beach with his students, he finds Rosy and Doryan's footprints in the sand and tracks them to a cave; later he finds a conch shell in Rosy's dresser, but refuses to confront her about it. Michael has also seen the two lovers, however, and having improvised a British officer's uniform, he tips off the townspeople about the affair. The townspeople turn on Rosy, deriding her as a "British officer's whore".
One night, in the midst of a fierce storm, IRB
leader Tim O'Leary (Barry Foster
)– who had killed a police constable earlier– and a small band of comrades arrive in Ryan's pub and strong-arm him into helping them recover a shipment of German arms from the storm.
When they leave, Ryan is left alone in possession of the phone, and tips off the British.
Soon, the entire town arrives at the beach to help O'Leary, but he and his followers are stopped by Major Doryan and his men on the road and arrested. O'Leary is shot and wounded by Doryan while attempting to escape.
Charles tells Rosy he is aware of her infatuation, but hopes it will pass. Though Rosy declares the affair over, Charles decides to leave her. That night he sees her return to Doryan. In dismay, he wanders in his nightclothes to the beach, where in the morning Father Collins finds him.
A mob, accusing Rosy of having informed the British of the arms shipment, strip her and shear off her hair. Father Collins arrives before they can do any worse. Ryan, deeply ashamed, has of course been unable to confess that he's the informer. It's his daughter, who guesses his guilt, who takes the punishment.
Meanwhile, Doryan walks along the beach and comes across Michael, who leads him to a cache of arms– including dynamite– that was not recovered. After Michael runs off, Doryan commits suicide by detonating the explosives.
The next day, Rosy and Charles leave for Dublin, enduring the taunts of the villagers as they go. As Charles gets on the small bus, Father Collins counsels him against ending the marriage. Just before the bus leaves, Rosy, who had previously found Michael repulsive to her, very touchingly kisses him on the cheek.
turned down the role of Father Collins: it had been written with him in mind, but Guinness, as a devout Roman Catholic, objected to what he felt was an inaccurate portrayal of a Catholic priest. His conflicts with Lean while making Doctor Zhivago also contributed.
Paul Scofield
was Lean's first choice for the part of Shaughnessy, but he was unable to escape a theater commitment. George C. Scott
, Anthony Hopkins
and Patrick McGoohan
were considered but not approached, and Gregory Peck
lobbied for the role but gave up after Robert Mitchum
was approached.
The role of Major Doryan was written for Marlon Brando
. Brando accepted, but problems with the production of Burn!
forced him to drop out. Peter O'Toole
, Richard Harris
and Richard Burton
were also considered. Lean then saw Christopher Jones in The Looking Glass War (1969) and decided he had to have Jones for the part, and so cast him without ever meeting him. However, unbeknown to Lean, The Looking Glass War had hidden Jones' short height and dubbed his high-pitched voice, and so Lean came to regret his casting decision for the role of the heroic, square-jawed Major. Lean was also dissatisfied with Jones' performance, and ultimately had him dubbed by Julian Holloway
.
, starring Sarah Miles. Lean read the script and said that he did not find it interesting, but suggested to Bolt that he would like to rework it into another setting. The film still retains parallels with Flaubert's novel– Rosy parallels Emma Bovary, Charles is her husband, Major Doryan is analogous to Rodolfo and Leon, Emma's lovers.
Lean had to wait a year before a suitably dramatic storm appeared. The image was kept clear by a glass disk spinning in front of the lens. Leo McKern was injured and badly shaken while filming the storm sequence, nearly drowning and losing his glass eye. He also disliked the amount of time spent working on the project, and afterwards claimed he would never act again (indeed, he did not act in films or television for several years). His comment on the experience was, "I don't like to be paid £500 a week for sitting down and playing Scrabble
."
Reportedly, Robert Mitchum was initially reluctant to take the role. While he admired the script, he was undergoing a personal crisis at the time and when pressed by Lean as to why he wouldn't be available for filming, told him "I was actually planning on committing suicide." Upon hearing of this, scriptwriter Robert Bolt
said to him "Well, if you just finish working on this wretched little film and then do yourself in, I'd be happy to stand the expenses of your burial."
Mitchum clashed with Lean, famously saying that "Working with David Lean is like constructing the Taj Mahal
out of toothpicks." Despite this, Mitchum confided to friends and family that he felt Ryan's Daughter was among his best roles and he always regretted the negative response the film received. In a radio interview, Mitchum claimed (despite the difficult production) Lean was one of the best directors he'd worked with.
Christopher Jones and Lean clashed frequently. Sharon Tate
, a friend of Jones' with whom he later claimed he was having an affair, was killed by Charles Manson
and his followers during filming, devastating the actor. Jones and Sarah Miles also grew to dislike one another, leading to trouble when filming the love scenes. Gerald Sim
's Captain Smith character was virtually a bit part in the script, but because of difficulties with Jones' high-pitched voice, which was deemed unsuitable and in need of dubbing, his scene was re-written so that Sim would speak most of the dialogue in the scene.
Ryan's Daughter was the last feature film photographed entirely in the 65mm Super Panavision format until Far and Away
(1992), which was shot largely at the same locations. Owing to bad weather, many of the beach scenes were filmed in Capetown, South Africa.
The village in the film was built by the production company from stone so that it could withstand the storms. Villagers from the town of Dunquin
were hired as extras. The area was at the time economically destitute, but the amount of money spent in the town– nearly a million pounds– revived the local economy and led to increased immigration to the Dingle Peninsula.
In the scene before Doryan commits suicide, there is a cut
from a sunset to Charles striking a match, which is a sly allusion to Lawrence of Arabia
with its famous cut from Peter O'Toole
blowing out a match to a sunrise in the desert.
At the appeal hearing, MGM executives explained that they needed the lower rating to allow more audience into the theatres, otherwise the company would not be able to survive financially. The appeal was overturned and the film received a "GP" rating, which later became "PG". Jack Valenti
considered this to be one of the tarnishing marks on the rating system. When MGM resubmitted the film to the MPAA in 1996, it was re-rated "R".
The film is rated M in Australia and M in New Zealand and contains sexual themes where it was originally rated PG in Australia and PG in New Zealand.
felt that "Lean's characters, well written and well acted, are finally dwarfed by his excessive scale."
Many attribute the bad reviews to critics' expectations being too high as Lean had directed three epic blockbusters in a row before Ryan's Daughter. The bad reaction to this film is what many say caused Lean not to make another film for more than ten years. (Others dispute this, citing the fact that Lean tried but was unable to get several projects off the ground, most notably The Bounty
.) The film was moderately successful worldwide at the box office and was one of the most successful films of 1970 in Britain, where it ran at a West End theatre for almost two years straight.
The film has also been criticised for its perceived depiction of the Irish proletariat as uncivilised compared with the occupying British forces and the Catholic Church. Some criticised the film as an attempt to blacken the legacy of the 1916 Easter Rising and the subsequent Irish War of Independence in relation to the eruption of "the Troubles
" in Northern Ireland at the time of the film's release. The depiction of the mob mistreating Rosy, one of the best dramatic sequences in the film, brings to mind the historical examples of 1944's liberated France, where after Liberation, women accused of having slept with German soldiers were often mistreated.
Since the film's recent release on DVD, Ryan's Daughter has been reconsidered by many critics, now claimed by many to be an overlooked masterpiece, countering many of the criticisms such as its alleged "excessive scale". Other elements, like John Mills' caricature
of 'the village idiot' (an Oscar-winning performance) have withstood the test of time less well. The film is still not as widely accepted as Lean's other epics and its critical reputation remains mixed at best. It stands out from his previous work, being characterized by a slower pace, more expansive and allegorical directing, with less dialogue than in previous films, though the film builds tension, albeit slowly.
Also Nominated for
David Lean
Sir David Lean CBE was an English film director, producer, screenwriter, and editor best remembered for big-screen epics such as The Bridge on the River Kwai , Lawrence of Arabia ,...
. The film, set in 1916, tells the story of a married Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
woman who has an affair with a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
officer during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, despite opposition from her nationalist neighbours. The film is a very loose adaptation of Gustave Flaubert
Gustave Flaubert
Gustave Flaubert was a French writer who is counted among the greatest Western novelists. He is known especially for his first published novel, Madame Bovary , and for his scrupulous devotion to his art and style.-Early life and education:Flaubert was born on December 12, 1821, in Rouen,...
's novel Madame Bovary
Madame Bovary
Madame Bovary is Gustave Flaubert's first published novel and is considered his masterpiece. The story focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who has adulterous affairs and lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life...
.
The film stars Robert Mitchum
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
, Sarah Miles
Sarah Miles
-Early life and career:Sarah Miles was born in the small town of Ingatestone, Essex, in South East England.She first attended Roedean but at the age of 15 she enrolled at RADA, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art...
, John Mills
John Mills
Sir John Mills CBE , born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills, was an English actor who made more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades.-Life and career:...
, Christopher Jones
Christopher Jones (actor)
William "Billy" Frank Jones, better known as Christopher Jones, is an American character actor, born August 18, 1941 in Jackson, Tennessee....
, Trevor Howard
Trevor Howard
Trevor Howard , born Trevor Wallace Howard-Smith, was an English film, stage and television actor.-Early life:...
and Leo McKern
Leo McKern
Reginald "Leo" McKern, AO was an Australian-born British actor who appeared in numerous British and Australian television programmes and movies, and more than 200 stage roles.-Early life:...
, with a score by Maurice Jarre
Maurice Jarre
Maurice-Alexis Jarre was a French composer and conductor.Although he composed several concert works, he is best known for his film scores, and is particularly known for his collaborations with film director David Lean. Jarre composed the scores to all of Lean's films since Lawrence of Arabia...
. It was photographed in Super Panavision 70
Super Panavision 70
Super Panavision 70 was the marketing brand name used to identify movies photographed with Panavision 70 mm spherical optics between 1959 and 1983.-History:...
by Freddie Young
Freddie Young
Freddie Young OBE, BSC , was one of Britain's most distinguished and influential cinematographers...
.
In its initial release, Ryan's Daughter was harshly received by critics and was a box office failure in the United States (it did make a profit through overseas earnings). However, it ended up winning two Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
.
Plot
The film takes place in the isolated village of Kirrary on the Dingle PeninsulaDingle Peninsula
The Dingle Peninsula is the northernmost of the major peninsulae in County Kerry. Its ends beyond the town of Dingle at Dunmore Head, the westernmost point of Ireland.-Name:...
in Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Rosy Ryan (Sarah Miles
Sarah Miles
-Early life and career:Sarah Miles was born in the small town of Ingatestone, Essex, in South East England.She first attended Roedean but at the age of 15 she enrolled at RADA, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art...
) is bored with her humdrum life and fantasizes about the outside world — much to the chagrin of the local priest, Father Hugh Collins (Trevor Howard
Trevor Howard
Trevor Howard , born Trevor Wallace Howard-Smith, was an English film, stage and television actor.-Early life:...
), an old, sharp-witted and highly influential person who knows all that goes on in the village. Rosy falls in love with the local schoolmaster, Charles Shaughnessy (Robert Mitchum
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
). She imagines, though he tries to convince her otherwise, that he will add excitement to her life. They marry, and Rosy quickly becomes discontented.
The villagers are nationalist
Irish nationalism
Irish nationalism manifests itself in political and social movements and in sentiment inspired by a love for Irish culture, language and history, and as a sense of pride in Ireland and in the Irish people...
and exclusionary, taunting Michael (John Mills
John Mills
Sir John Mills CBE , born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills, was an English actor who made more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades.-Life and career:...
) (the village idiot
Village idiot
The village idiot in strict terms is a person locally known for ignorance or stupidity, but is also a common term for a stereotypically silly or nonsensical person. The term is also used as a stereotype of the mentally disabled...
) and British soldiers from a nearby army base. They are resentful of Rosy, the spoilt daughter of the local publican Tom Ryan (Leo McKern
Leo McKern
Reginald "Leo" McKern, AO was an Australian-born British actor who appeared in numerous British and Australian television programmes and movies, and more than 200 stage roles.-Early life:...
). Ryan pretends to be a staunch nationalist– in an early scene, he strongly supports the recently suppressed Easter Rising
Easter Rising
The Easter Rising was an insurrection staged in Ireland during Easter Week, 1916. The Rising was mounted by Irish republicans with the aims of ending British rule in Ireland and establishing the Irish Republic at a time when the British Empire was heavily engaged in the First World War...
, referring to the rebels as "our boys"– but in truth he is an informer for the British.
Major Randolph Doryan (Christopher Jones
Christopher Jones (actor)
William "Billy" Frank Jones, better known as Christopher Jones, is an American character actor, born August 18, 1941 in Jackson, Tennessee....
) arrives to take command of the local army base. A veteran of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, he has been awarded a Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
, but has a crippled leg and suffers from shell shock
Shell Shock
Shell Shock, also known as 82nd Marines Attack was a 1964 film by B-movie director John Hayes. The film takes place in Italy during World War II, and tells the story of a sergeant with his group of soldiers....
. Rosy is instantly and passionately attracted to him. Michael's absent-minded banging of his leg on the pub bench causes Doryan to flashback to the trenches. He collapses. When he recovers, he is comforted by Rosy. The two passionately kiss until they are interrupted by the arrival of Ryan and the townspeople. The next day, the two meet in the forest for a 'gauzy', passionate liaison.
Charles becomes suspicious of Rosy, but keeps his thoughts to himself. While on a trip to the beach with his students, he finds Rosy and Doryan's footprints in the sand and tracks them to a cave; later he finds a conch shell in Rosy's dresser, but refuses to confront her about it. Michael has also seen the two lovers, however, and having improvised a British officer's uniform, he tips off the townspeople about the affair. The townspeople turn on Rosy, deriding her as a "British officer's whore".
Irish Republican Brotherhood
The Irish Republican Brotherhood was a secret oath-bound fraternal organisation dedicated to the establishment of an "independent democratic republic" in Ireland during the second half of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century...
leader Tim O'Leary (Barry Foster
Barry Foster (actor)
Barry Foster was a British actor who appeared in numerous film roles and is known for his leading role as a Dutch detective in the ITV drama series, Van der Valk, which spanned five series over 20 years from 1972....
)– who had killed a police constable earlier– and a small band of comrades arrive in Ryan's pub and strong-arm him into helping them recover a shipment of German arms from the storm.
When they leave, Ryan is left alone in possession of the phone, and tips off the British.
Soon, the entire town arrives at the beach to help O'Leary, but he and his followers are stopped by Major Doryan and his men on the road and arrested. O'Leary is shot and wounded by Doryan while attempting to escape.
Charles tells Rosy he is aware of her infatuation, but hopes it will pass. Though Rosy declares the affair over, Charles decides to leave her. That night he sees her return to Doryan. In dismay, he wanders in his nightclothes to the beach, where in the morning Father Collins finds him.
A mob, accusing Rosy of having informed the British of the arms shipment, strip her and shear off her hair. Father Collins arrives before they can do any worse. Ryan, deeply ashamed, has of course been unable to confess that he's the informer. It's his daughter, who guesses his guilt, who takes the punishment.
Meanwhile, Doryan walks along the beach and comes across Michael, who leads him to a cache of arms– including dynamite– that was not recovered. After Michael runs off, Doryan commits suicide by detonating the explosives.
The next day, Rosy and Charles leave for Dublin, enduring the taunts of the villagers as they go. As Charles gets on the small bus, Father Collins counsels him against ending the marriage. Just before the bus leaves, Rosy, who had previously found Michael repulsive to her, very touchingly kisses him on the cheek.
Cast
- Sarah MilesSarah Miles-Early life and career:Sarah Miles was born in the small town of Ingatestone, Essex, in South East England.She first attended Roedean but at the age of 15 she enrolled at RADA, the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art...
as Rosy Ryan - Robert MitchumRobert MitchumRobert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
as Charles Shaughnessy - Trevor HowardTrevor HowardTrevor Howard , born Trevor Wallace Howard-Smith, was an English film, stage and television actor.-Early life:...
as Father Hugh Collins - John MillsJohn MillsSir John Mills CBE , born Lewis Ernest Watts Mills, was an English actor who made more than 120 films in a career spanning seven decades.-Life and career:...
as Michael - Christopher JonesChristopher Jones (actor)William "Billy" Frank Jones, better known as Christopher Jones, is an American character actor, born August 18, 1941 in Jackson, Tennessee....
as Major Randolph Doryan - Leo McKernLeo McKernReginald "Leo" McKern, AO was an Australian-born British actor who appeared in numerous British and Australian television programmes and movies, and more than 200 stage roles.-Early life:...
as Tom Ryan - Barry FosterBarry Foster (actor)Barry Foster was a British actor who appeared in numerous film roles and is known for his leading role as a Dutch detective in the ITV drama series, Van der Valk, which spanned five series over 20 years from 1972....
as Tim O'Leary - Gerald SimGerald SimGerald Grant Sim is an English actor who is perhaps best known for playing the Rector in To the Manor Born. He is the younger brother of actress Sheila Sim and brother-in-law of actor/director Lord Attenborough.- Career :...
as Captain Smith - Evin CrowleyEvin CrowleyEvin Crowley is a Northern Irish actress. She was born in Bangor, Northern Ireland.Crowley started acting as an amateur at a small theatre, later to become the Lyric Theatre, in Belfast, before later being chosen to play the role of Maureen in David Lean's Ryan's Daughter...
as Moureen Cassidy - Marie KeanMarie KeanMarie Kean was an Irish actress of stage and screen whose career spanned over 40 years.Kean grew up in the village of Rush, County Dublin and was educated at Loreto College, North Great George's Street, Dublin...
as Mrs. McCardle - Arthur O'SullivanArthur O'SullivanArthur O'Sullivan , also known as Archie O'Sullivan, was an Irish actor who appeared on stage, screen and radio.- Radio career:...
as Joe McCardle - Brian O'HigginsBrian O'HigginsBrian O'Higgins was an Irish Sinn Féin politician. He was President of Sinn Féin from 1931–1933. He was elected unopposed as a Sinn Féin MP for Clare West at the 1918 general election...
as Constable O'Connor - Barry Jackson as a Corporal
Casting
Alec GuinnessAlec Guinness
Sir Alec Guinness, CH, CBE was an English actor. He was featured in several of the Ealing Comedies, including Kind Hearts and Coronets in which he played eight different characters. He later won the Academy Award for Best Actor for his role as Colonel Nicholson in The Bridge on the River Kwai...
turned down the role of Father Collins: it had been written with him in mind, but Guinness, as a devout Roman Catholic, objected to what he felt was an inaccurate portrayal of a Catholic priest. His conflicts with Lean while making Doctor Zhivago also contributed.
Paul Scofield
Paul Scofield
David Paul Scofield, CH, CBE , better known as Paul Scofield, was an English actor of stage and screen...
was Lean's first choice for the part of Shaughnessy, but he was unable to escape a theater commitment. George C. Scott
George C. Scott
George Campbell Scott was an American stage and film actor, director and producer. He was best known for his stage work, as well as his portrayal of General George S. Patton in the film Patton, and as General Buck Turgidson in Stanley Kubrick's Dr...
, Anthony Hopkins
Anthony Hopkins
Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins, KBE , best known as Anthony Hopkins, is a Welsh actor of film, stage and television...
and Patrick McGoohan
Patrick McGoohan
Patrick Joseph McGoohan was an American-born actor, raised in Ireland and England, with an extensive stage and film career, most notably in the 1960s television series Danger Man , and The Prisoner, which he co-created...
were considered but not approached, and Gregory Peck
Gregory Peck
Eldred Gregory Peck was an American actor.One of 20th Century Fox's most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1960s, Peck continued to play important roles well into the 1980s. His notable performances include that of Atticus Finch in the 1962 film To Kill a Mockingbird, for which he won an...
lobbied for the role but gave up after Robert Mitchum
Robert Mitchum
Robert Charles Durman Mitchum was an American film actor, author, composer and singer and is #23 on the American Film Institute's list of the greatest male American screen legends of all time...
was approached.
The role of Major Doryan was written for Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando
Marlon Brando, Jr. was an American movie star and political activist. "Unchallenged as the most important actor in modern American Cinema" according to the St...
. Brando accepted, but problems with the production of Burn!
Burn!
Burn! is a 1969 film directed by Gillo Pontecorvo; starring Marlon Brando. The plot is loosely based on events in the history of Guadeloupe.The main character is named after William Walker, the famous American filibuster...
forced him to drop out. Peter O'Toole
Peter O'Toole
Peter Seamus Lorcan O'Toole is an Irish actor of stage and screen. O'Toole achieved stardom in 1962 playing T. E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia, and then went on to become a highly-honoured film and stage actor. He has been nominated for eight Academy Awards, and holds the record for most...
, Richard Harris
Richard Harris
Richard St John Harris was an Irish actor, singer-songwriter, theatrical producer, film director and writer....
and Richard Burton
Richard Burton
Richard Burton, CBE was a Welsh actor. He was nominated seven times for an Academy Award, six of which were for Best Actor in a Leading Role , and was a recipient of BAFTA, Golden Globe and Tony Awards for Best Actor. Although never trained as an actor, Burton was, at one time, the highest-paid...
were also considered. Lean then saw Christopher Jones in The Looking Glass War (1969) and decided he had to have Jones for the part, and so cast him without ever meeting him. However, unbeknown to Lean, The Looking Glass War had hidden Jones' short height and dubbed his high-pitched voice, and so Lean came to regret his casting decision for the role of the heroic, square-jawed Major. Lean was also dissatisfied with Jones' performance, and ultimately had him dubbed by Julian Holloway
Julian Holloway
Julian Holloway is an English actor now based in Hollywood, CA, United States. He is the son of the comedy actor and singer Stanley Holloway and former chorus dancer and actress Violet Lane...
.
Production
Robert Bolt's original idea was to make a film of Madame BovaryMadame Bovary
Madame Bovary is Gustave Flaubert's first published novel and is considered his masterpiece. The story focuses on a doctor's wife, Emma Bovary, who has adulterous affairs and lives beyond her means in order to escape the banalities and emptiness of provincial life...
, starring Sarah Miles. Lean read the script and said that he did not find it interesting, but suggested to Bolt that he would like to rework it into another setting. The film still retains parallels with Flaubert's novel– Rosy parallels Emma Bovary, Charles is her husband, Major Doryan is analogous to Rodolfo and Leon, Emma's lovers.
Lean had to wait a year before a suitably dramatic storm appeared. The image was kept clear by a glass disk spinning in front of the lens. Leo McKern was injured and badly shaken while filming the storm sequence, nearly drowning and losing his glass eye. He also disliked the amount of time spent working on the project, and afterwards claimed he would never act again (indeed, he did not act in films or television for several years). His comment on the experience was, "I don't like to be paid £500 a week for sitting down and playing Scrabble
Scrabble
Scrabble is a word game in which two to four players score points by forming words from individual lettered tiles on a game board marked with a 15-by-15 grid. The words are formed across and down in crossword fashion and must appear in a standard dictionary. Official reference works provide a list...
."
Reportedly, Robert Mitchum was initially reluctant to take the role. While he admired the script, he was undergoing a personal crisis at the time and when pressed by Lean as to why he wouldn't be available for filming, told him "I was actually planning on committing suicide." Upon hearing of this, scriptwriter Robert Bolt
Robert Bolt
Robert Oxton Bolt, CBE was an English playwright and a two-time Oscar winning screenwriter.-Career:He was born in Sale, Cheshire. At Manchester Grammar School his affinity for Sir Thomas More first developed. He attended the University of Manchester, and, after war service, the University of...
said to him "Well, if you just finish working on this wretched little film and then do yourself in, I'd be happy to stand the expenses of your burial."
Mitchum clashed with Lean, famously saying that "Working with David Lean is like constructing the Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal is a white Marble mausoleum located in Agra, India. It was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal...
out of toothpicks." Despite this, Mitchum confided to friends and family that he felt Ryan's Daughter was among his best roles and he always regretted the negative response the film received. In a radio interview, Mitchum claimed (despite the difficult production) Lean was one of the best directors he'd worked with.
Christopher Jones and Lean clashed frequently. Sharon Tate
Sharon Tate
Sharon Marie Tate was an American actress. During the 1960s she played small television roles before appearing in several films. After receiving positive reviews for her comedic performances, she was hailed as one of Hollywood's promising newcomers and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for...
, a friend of Jones' with whom he later claimed he was having an affair, was killed by Charles Manson
Charles Manson
Charles Milles Manson is an American criminal who led what became known as the Manson Family, a quasi-commune that arose in California in the late 1960s. He was found guilty of conspiracy to commit the Tate/LaBianca murders carried out by members of the group at his instruction...
and his followers during filming, devastating the actor. Jones and Sarah Miles also grew to dislike one another, leading to trouble when filming the love scenes. Gerald Sim
Gerald Sim
Gerald Grant Sim is an English actor who is perhaps best known for playing the Rector in To the Manor Born. He is the younger brother of actress Sheila Sim and brother-in-law of actor/director Lord Attenborough.- Career :...
's Captain Smith character was virtually a bit part in the script, but because of difficulties with Jones' high-pitched voice, which was deemed unsuitable and in need of dubbing, his scene was re-written so that Sim would speak most of the dialogue in the scene.
Ryan's Daughter was the last feature film photographed entirely in the 65mm Super Panavision format until Far and Away
Far and Away
Far and Away is a 1992 adventure-drama-romance film directed by Ron Howard from a script by Howard and Bob Dolman, and stars Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. Cinematography by Mikael Salomon, with a music score by John Williams...
(1992), which was shot largely at the same locations. Owing to bad weather, many of the beach scenes were filmed in Capetown, South Africa.
The village in the film was built by the production company from stone so that it could withstand the storms. Villagers from the town of Dunquin
Dunquin
Dún Chaoin , meaning "Caon's stronghold", is a Gaeltacht village in west County Kerry, Ireland. Dunquin lies at the Western tip of the Dingle Peninsula, overlooking the Blasket Islands. At 10°27'16"W, it is the most westerly settlement of Ireland...
were hired as extras. The area was at the time economically destitute, but the amount of money spent in the town– nearly a million pounds– revived the local economy and led to increased immigration to the Dingle Peninsula.
In the scene before Doryan commits suicide, there is a cut
Cut (filmmaking)
In the post-production process of film editing and video editing, a cut is an abrupt, but usually trivial film transition from one sequence to another. It is synonymous with the term edit, though "edit" can imply any number of transitions or effects. The cut, dissolve and wipe serve as the three...
from a sunset to Charles striking a match, which is a sly allusion to Lawrence of Arabia
Lawrence of Arabia (film)
Lawrence of Arabia is a 1962 British film based on the life of T. E. Lawrence. It was directed by David Lean and produced by Sam Spiegel through his British company, Horizon Pictures, with the screenplay by Robert Bolt and Michael Wilson. The film stars Peter O'Toole in the title role. It is widely...
with its famous cut from Peter O'Toole
Peter O'Toole
Peter Seamus Lorcan O'Toole is an Irish actor of stage and screen. O'Toole achieved stardom in 1962 playing T. E. Lawrence in Lawrence of Arabia, and then went on to become a highly-honoured film and stage actor. He has been nominated for eight Academy Awards, and holds the record for most...
blowing out a match to a sunrise in the desert.
MPAA ratings
The MPAA originally gave Ryan's Daughter an "R" rating. A nude scene between Miles and Jones, as well as its themes involving infidelity, were the primary reasons for the MPAA's decision. At the time, MGM was having financial trouble and appealed the rating not due to artistic reasons but due to financial reasons.At the appeal hearing, MGM executives explained that they needed the lower rating to allow more audience into the theatres, otherwise the company would not be able to survive financially. The appeal was overturned and the film received a "GP" rating, which later became "PG". Jack Valenti
Jack Valenti
Jack Joseph Valenti was a long-time president of the Motion Picture Association of America. During his 38-year tenure in the MPAA, he created the MPAA film rating system, and he was generally regarded as one of the most influential pro-copyright lobbyists in the world...
considered this to be one of the tarnishing marks on the rating system. When MGM resubmitted the film to the MPAA in 1996, it was re-rated "R".
The film is rated M in Australia and M in New Zealand and contains sexual themes where it was originally rated PG in Australia and PG in New Zealand.
Reception
Upon its initial release, the film received a hostile reception from the critical community. Roger EbertRoger Ebert
Roger Joseph Ebert is an American film critic and screenwriter. He is the first film critic to win a Pulitzer Prize for Criticism.Ebert is known for his film review column and for the television programs Sneak Previews, At the Movies with Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, and Siskel and Ebert and The...
felt that "Lean's characters, well written and well acted, are finally dwarfed by his excessive scale."
Many attribute the bad reviews to critics' expectations being too high as Lean had directed three epic blockbusters in a row before Ryan's Daughter. The bad reaction to this film is what many say caused Lean not to make another film for more than ten years. (Others dispute this, citing the fact that Lean tried but was unable to get several projects off the ground, most notably The Bounty
The Bounty
The Bounty is a 1984 British historical film directed by Roger Donaldson, starring Mel Gibson and Anthony Hopkins, and produced by Bernard Williams with Dino De Laurentiis as executive producer. It is the fifth film version of the story of the mutiny on the Bounty. The screenplay was by Robert Bolt...
.) The film was moderately successful worldwide at the box office and was one of the most successful films of 1970 in Britain, where it ran at a West End theatre for almost two years straight.
The film has also been criticised for its perceived depiction of the Irish proletariat as uncivilised compared with the occupying British forces and the Catholic Church. Some criticised the film as an attempt to blacken the legacy of the 1916 Easter Rising and the subsequent Irish War of Independence in relation to the eruption of "the Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
" in Northern Ireland at the time of the film's release. The depiction of the mob mistreating Rosy, one of the best dramatic sequences in the film, brings to mind the historical examples of 1944's liberated France, where after Liberation, women accused of having slept with German soldiers were often mistreated.
Since the film's recent release on DVD, Ryan's Daughter has been reconsidered by many critics, now claimed by many to be an overlooked masterpiece, countering many of the criticisms such as its alleged "excessive scale". Other elements, like John Mills' caricature
Caricature
A caricature is a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. In literature, a caricature is a description of a person using exaggeration of some characteristics and oversimplification of others.Caricatures can be...
of 'the village idiot' (an Oscar-winning performance) have withstood the test of time less well. The film is still not as widely accepted as Lean's other epics and its critical reputation remains mixed at best. It stands out from his previous work, being characterized by a slower pace, more expansive and allegorical directing, with less dialogue than in previous films, though the film builds tension, albeit slowly.
Academy Awards
- Best Actor in a Supporting RoleAcademy Award for Best Supporting ActorPerformance by an Actor in a Supporting Role is one of the Academy Awards of Merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actor who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry. Since its inception, however, the...
- John Mills - Best CinematographyAcademy Award for Best CinematographyThe Academy Award for Best Cinematography is an Academy Award awarded each year to a cinematographer for work in one particular motion picture.-History:...
- Freddie YoungFreddie YoungFreddie Young OBE, BSC , was one of Britain's most distinguished and influential cinematographers...
Also Nominated for
- Best Actress in a Leading RoleAcademy Award for Best ActressPerformance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the Academy Awards of merit presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance while working within the film industry...
- Sarah Miles - Best Sound - Gordon McCallumGordon McCallumGordon McCallum was an American-born English sound engineer. He won an Academy Award for Best Sound and was nominated for three more in the same category...
, John BramallJohn BramallJohn Bramall was a British sound engineer. He was nominated for an Academy Award in the category Best Sound for the film Ryan's Daughter.-External links:...