A young girl lives in the Outer Hebrides in a small village in the years just before WWI. Isolated and hard by the shore, her life takes a dramatic change when a terrible tragedy befalls her.
Chuck says:
The Woman’s Film was a subgenre that reached its zenith in the 30’s and 40’s. They focused on female protagonists dealing with either domestic troubles, problematic motherhood, or romantic woes. Self-sacrifice leading to martyrdom was the usual path taken by these characters, qualities many female viewers identified with. The vicarious experience in seeing a version of their own compromised lives on the screen offered a sense of validation, keeping the genre viable through the 50’s.
Based on the novel by John MacKay, Richie Adams’ “The Road Dance,” had it been made during this period, would have likely starred Bette Davis or Joan Fontaine. The broad theatrical approach these two were known for would be right at home here, as its heroine endures more than enough suffering and abuse at the hands of the judgmental society she’s trapped in.
Fortunately, Adams and his cast take a more grounded approach, elevating what could have been an overwrought melodrama to create a genuinely moving film, one that benefits greatly from the fierce performances of the cast and a degree of realism that prevents it from slipping into sensationalism.
The time is 1916, the place is a village on the Scottish Isle of Lewis. Life is hard but most in this tiny hamlet seem content with their lot in life, even Kirsty Macleod (Hermione Corfield) who toils away on her family’s small plot of land with her mother, Mairi (Morven Christie), and her sister, Annie (Ali Fumiko Whitney). Though her father passed away some years ago, his dream of taking the family to America still hangs before Kirsty, a tantalizing prospect that always seems just out of reach.
Beautiful and smart, Kirsty has no shortage of potential suitors, among them the awkward Ian (Tom Byrne) and fiddle-playing Angus (Luke Nunn). However, she has her eye on Murdo (Will Fletcher), a more openly sensitive young man who reads poetry and seems to have his feet planted more firmly on the ground. A sort of courting begins between them. However, a conscription edict of all able young men is issued, plunging all of their lives into turmoil.
The night before the young men are to be shipped to the front, love is declared and promises are made between Kirsty and Murdo. However, tragedy strikes when she wanders down by the sea where she is raped by an unseen assailant.
The personal trial the young woman is forced to endure nearly crushes her spirit. Shame prevents her from speaking of the incident and when she discovers she is with child, the lengths she takes to cover it up are extreme. Of course, this can’t continue and ultimately Mair and Annie take a hand in saving Kirsty.
To be sure, there will be some who object to the film’s third act as the secrets that are exposed and coincidences that occur test the credulity of the story. (If I told you this was based on a true story, would it help?) Be that as it may, the events that unfold adhere to the logic set up by the narrative, so it isn’t as if Adams isn’t springing something out of left field. That being said, the film’s final scene is a bit hard to swallow.
Filming on location in the Outer Hebrides lends a sense of realism as well as a touch of the romantic. If a tale such as this were to occur, it would be here. In the end though, it’s the conviction of the performers that makes it all work. Each finds the proper tone – never an arch moment or wink at the audience that this is all so ridiculous – giving sincere performances that provide the proper sense of humanity to what could have been stereotypes. Carrying most of the burden is Corfield, who is outstanding. The actor channels Kirsty’s despair in a way that cuts straight to your heart. You simply can’t take your eyes off her, her conviction in the role a force to be reckoned with. Realizing this young woman initially as a confused victim and developing her into mature survivor, Corfield’s work proves the linchpin of this handsome production. “Dance” manages to defy expectations, eschewing genre conventions to deliver a rich, moving portrait of perseverance.
3 1/2 Stars
