December Bride (1990) User Reviews

Soulful Irish Film

[essmom · 6/10 · 14 August 2020]

December bride is a lovely film unhurried but deeply felt, in no small part due to the soundtrack by Jürgen Knieper, who evidently enjoyed a long relationship with many directors, especially Wim a Wenders, having composed on seven of his movies.

This movie is also remarkable for the fact it is Saskia Reeves cinema film acting debut. She is enigmatic and enchanting as the liberated early 20th-century Irish lass. In movies from 1991, this was certainly not the norm and all the more refreshing.

December Bride is also only the third theater movie in which Ciarán Hinds appears. He is also remarkable in appearance and presence.

Its director, Thaddeus Sullivan, had directed one previous theater movie, this being the second movie. All of this just to say, this is a movie I can recommend as an unusual scenic love story.

A beautiful coastline breeds cold people with little patience for keeping their judgments to themselves.

[mark.waltz · 6/10 · 24 March 2022]

This was a very difficult film to get into little loan judge for its pluses and minuses. You can't even judge it as a character piece because everybody in this Northern Ireland community of sheep herders and potato farmers seems consumed with judging. Poor Sarah (Saskia Reeves) wants little to do with the church going community where the local preacher makes mental notes every Sunday of who is there and who isn't. Reeves is constantly reprimanded by the minister and her mother, housekeeper to the local potato farmer, feeling all eyes on her when she goes into town. Imagine the shock when she ends up in the family way and won't identify the father, let alone get married. Tragedy results and as the years go by for the single mother, the judgments of the sins fall on the daughter.

You have to be in the mood for this summer piece of Irish drama that may take place in a very beautiful, God gifted settong, but hopeless for a woman in Reeves' position. Even had she not been in the family way out of wedlock and married a local farmer or sheepherder, life would have been somber for her because happiness doesn't seem to exist for these people. The characters in this film don't seem to have the actors in the roles, but it's like the camera has gone back in time and filmed a real situation as it occurred. The only real passion of life occurs when Reeves ends up being seduced by the two brothers, and once again when everything comes out in the open. It's disturbing to watch the judgments flow like mist on the waters, so it's refreshing when on the rare occasion, one of the characters manages to get out a laugh which creates judgments from those looking on. If the viewer is not in the right space when they put this on, it's easy to fall asleep or just give up on it. It's like one of those epic novels where the emotions grow slowly, and fortunately, this isn't lengthy.

Theme music

[jmck-6 · 7/10 · 27 December 2009]

The theme music for December Bride is remarkable. The German composer Jürgen Knieper wrote it for the production. It is original and has a strong thematic character. Recommended.

And since we're forced to discuss the requirement of length, why the heck does IMDb demand that we write at minimum 10 lines in a comment? I would be writing for longer than the episode was on TV and about nothing. Luckily they have given me a topic to type onward about because, in order for this to be a valid submission; in order for me to ask whether you, the interested parties, noticed or cared about the length of the broadcast, i must go on for ten, bloody lines.

life is rough on the irish coast.

[ksf-2 · 8/10 · 19 April 2022]

Rough living in cold ireland. Gathering up the bundles of seaweed. Fun stuff. When martha gives sarah (saskia reeves) hell for skipping church, sarah decides she's had enough, and moves in with the two echlin brothers. And gets pregnant. The scandal of the town. Sarah is willing to have the scorn of the town, and keep the details to herself. One of the brothers even offers to marry her, but she won't have it. It's not important to her. Donal mccann (one of the echlin brothers) died young at 56. Directed by thaddeus osullivan. Based on the novel by sam bell. It's a strong story. Very well done. Serious tone, but not too depressing.

what the crap is going on?

[Stardirt · 1/10 · 5 May 2002]

the plot is very choppy. there is little character development. most of the time you dont know what is happening till it already happened. nearly every 3 minutes i heard someone say, "what is happening?" this movie is a big head ache.

Unusual Irish Lass

[kenbond-53805 · 5/10 · 28 August 2020]

My maternal grandmother came from this area of Ireland. The screen writer's take on the subject of female liberation was refreshing, especially in light of the cavorting antics of the local priest/preacher.