The Crucible [Blu-ray]

Director: Nicholas Hytner, Alex Segal Nicholas Hytner

Overview

When Arthur Miller's play The Crucible was first staged in 1953, it was widely acclaimed as a metaphor for the recklessness of Joseph McCarthy and his spurious crusade against communism. In its 1996 screen adaptation (scripted by Miller), the tone has been adjusted somewhat and plays as a warning against the dangers of political and religious extremism of all kinds. After a group of young women is accused of witchcraft in the Puritan community of Salem, Mass. in 1692, Abigail Williams (Winona Ryder) is held in suspicion of practicing magic. Abigail in turn levels charges against John Proctor (Daniel Day-Lewis) and his wife Elizabeth (Joan Allen). Abigail has a private grudge against the Proctors; while working as their servant, she had an affair with John, and when John ended the relationship and returned to his wife, Abigail was fired. Now the Reverend Parris (Bruce Davison) is hearing accusations and counter-accusations of misdeeds from all sides of the community in the wake of Abigail's charges, so he brings in Judge Danforth (Paul Scofield) to determine who is guilty or innocent. However, given the moral climate of the time, it seems someone has to be found guilty of witchcraft, even though firm evidence of wrongdoing is becoming hard to come by. This was the second screen version of The Crucible, though it was the first one in English; the previous version, filmed in France in 1956, starred Simone Signoret and Yves Montand.

Product Details

Release Date:	04/11/2017
UPC:	0738329207380
Original Release:	1996
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	Kl Studio Classics
Region Code:	A
Presentation:	[Wide Screen]
Sound:	[DTS 5.1-Channel Surround Sound]
Language:	English
Time:	2:04:00

Special Features

A conversation with Daniel Day-Lewis and Arthur Miller; Audio commentary with director Nicholas Hytner and writer Arthur Miller; Making-of featurette; Original theatrical trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Daniel Day-Lewis	John Proctor
Winona Ryder	Abigail Williams
Paul Scofield	Judge Danforth
Joan Allen	Elizabeth Proctor
Bruce Davison	Rev. Samuel Parris
Rob Campbell	Rev. John Hale
Jeffrey Jones	Thomas Putnam
Peter Vaughan	Giles Corey
Karron Graves	Mary Warren
Charlayne Woodard	Tituba
Frances Conroy	Ann Putnam
Elizabeth Lawrence	Rebecca Nurse
George Gaynes	Judge Sewall
Mary Pat Gleason	Martha Corey
Robert Breuler	Judge Hathorne
Rachael Bella	Betty Parris
Ashley Peldon	Ruth Putnam
Tom McDermott	Francis Nurse
John Griesemer	Ezekiel Cheever
Michael Gaston	Marshal Herrick
William Preston	George Jacobs
Ruth Maleczech	Goody Osborne
Sheila Pinkham	Goody Good
Peter Maloney	Dr. Griggs
Kali Rocha	Mercy Lewis
Taylor Stanley	Joanna Preston
Lian-Marie Holmes	Deliverance Fuller
Charlotte Melen	Margaret Kenney
Carmella Mulvihill	Hannah Brown
Jessie Kilguss	Deborah Flint
Simone Marean	Rachel Buxton
Amee Gray	Lydia Sheldon
Anna V. Boksenbaum	Sarah Pope
Mary Reardon	Esther Wilkens
Alexander Streit	Joseph Proctor
Michael McKinstry	Daniel Proctor
Dorothy Brodesser	Mrs. Griggs
Dossy Peabody	Goody Sibber
Mara Clark	Goody Barrow
Jane Pulkkinen	Goody Bellows
Katrina Nevin	Dorcas Bellows
Will Lyman	Isaiah Goodkind
Karen MacDonald	Townswoman
Sheila Ferrini	Townswoman
June Lewin	Townswoman
Ken Cheeseman	Goat Owner
Stanely Taylor	Joanna Preston
David Picker	Actor
Steven Ochoa	Putnam's Servant
George C. Scott	Actor
Colleen Dewhurst	Actor
Melvyn Douglas	Actor

Technical Credits

Robert A. Miller

Nicholas Hytner	Director
Donna Isaacson	Casting
Robert A. Miller	Producer,Screenwriter
David V. Picker	Producer
Brian Ricci	Special Effects
Walter Scott	Stunts
Daniel Swee	Casting
Alex Segal	Director

Editorial Reviews

Aided by Arthur Miller's script, an adaptation of his own play, Nicholas Hytner's The Crucible captures a palpable sense of the hysteria and circular logic that damned 19 residents of Salem who refused to confess to witchcraft. The film sustains its tension for upwards of two hours, with top-notch acting by such heavy hitters as Daniel Day-Lewis, Joan Allen, and Paul Scofield. But it's Miller's dialogue, memorable for its lyrical precision, that perfectly distills the hopelessness of evading the accusations that spread through that small Massachusetts community. While the film surely condemns the alarmist reactions of the church and courts, it nonetheless outlines the systematic process that led the leaders to their conclusions. Alarmist they may have been, but believe it they did, and they acted on what they felt was the truth, after much internal debate. The film stirs up religious conundrums that are fascinating to contemplate, even for the spiritually disinclined. Scofield is powerful as the dispassionate magistrate whose word could send an accused witch to the gallows. Allen's crumbling stoicism in the role of Elizabeth Proctor earned her a well-deserved Oscar nomination, and Day-Lewis turns in his usual soulful performance, burning silently until a richly emotional denouement. Winona Ryder is a little too showy as the morally compromised Abigail Williams, but the rest of the supporting cast paints a true picture of a town torn asunder. The gorgeous cinematography supports the weighty issues at its core, making The Crucible a profound examination of one of the more disquieting and regrettable periods in American history.

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