Despite the cast taking themselves very seriously indeed, The Scarlet Letter is a great comic turn, complete with cod-accents and other period jiggery-pokery.
Comment
08/04/09
The Scarlet Letter (1995)
16
%
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:32
Fresh:5
Rotten:27
Average Rating:3/10
Runtime: 2 hrs 15 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: Roland Joffé's adaptation of Nathaniel Hawthorne's seminal novel tells the story of an intolerant Puritan community in the early days of American settlement. In the 1660s, Hester Prynne (Demi... [More]
Starring: Demi Moore, Gary Oldman, Robert Duvall, Lisa Jolliff-Andoh
Director: Roland Joffé
Reviews for The Scarlet Letter
Top CriticFor all the talent on display, this is a waste of movie.
08/04/09
Top CriticNot only does the film bear little resemblance to the source novel, but it's cluttered with ridiculous symbolism.
06/24/06
Top CriticA sweepingly romantic and formulaically fulfilling tale set in the oppressively patriarchal and staunchly religious mid-17th century.
06/05/02
Corny, heavy-handed, but definitely romantic, The Scarlet Letter is a mindless piece of historical amusement.
05/14/03
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.
08/04/09
This is a well-acted, beautiful movie.
06/18/02
With Demi Moore and Gary Oldman as those 17th century adulterers Hester Prynne and the Rev. Dimmesdale, the movie has its silly moments, but more impressively, it is turgid, the second most prevalent trait of Joffe's films, and long, the third.
01/01/00
If you've read the book you won't know the ending. Let's just say that Indians with flaming arrows come to the rescue. They manage to keep a straight face, which is more than anyone in the audience will be able to do.
08/30/04
Top CriticThe result is merely a big-budget, opulently costumed soap opera that is way too long (two hours, 15 minutes) and way too slow.
01/01/00
Roland Joffe's deeply ridiculous movie is caught between rocks and hard places, from its "what were they thinking?" concept ("freely adapted from the novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne") to its muddled execution.
01/01/00
Oh, Roland Joffé, thy free adaptation of the Hawthorne classic didst produce abudant derisive laughter. Didst thou once direct 'The Killing Fields?'
05/19/05
Picture yourself trudging out of the theater with a letter "D" (for "disappointment") firmly pinned to your chest.
01/01/00
The script by Douglas Day Stewart gives new meaning to the phrase "free adaptation".
04/25/03
No review available.
07/07/05
This catastrophic conglomeration of Puritanical repression and modern sensibilities squanders terrific acting talent and sumptuous production values, not to mention a darn good story.
01/01/00
Literary purists will be aghast at some of the liberties taken with the original text, but my complaints have more to do with cinematic misjudgments than with those in the book-to-screen translation.
01/01/00
No review available.
08/31/05
“Freely adapted from the novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne,” the credits say cautiously. I'll say.
08/04/09
Though it's unclear what the audience would be for a faithful rendition of the Hawthorne novel, the question of who would ever want to see this one is murkier still.
02/13/01
Top CriticLatest News for The Scarlet Letter
March 30, 2009:
An Easy A for Emma Stone 
Emma Stone will star in a "modern, high-school retelling" of Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Scarlet Letter," penned by Bert V. Royal and titled "Easy A." More...
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