The Field
An Irish farmer’s lifelong claim to ancestral land collides with foreign money, modernization, and the destructive force of pride.
Overview
A gripping tale of land, legacy, and the lengths one man will go to protect his heritage.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Moderate
- brooding
- grim
- melancholic
- serious film night
- irish cinema marathon
What critics said
Critics recognized powerful performances and a grim rural allegory but broadly found the material overly theatrical, contrived, and melodramatic.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Bull McCabe treats the field as the material embodiment of generations of family sacrifice.
The American bidder wants the field for a highway, placing communal memory against development and foreign capital.
The Irish farmland and cliffs frame the characters' isolation, pride, and escalating struggle.
Bull McCabe's determination to secure the field drives both his family and the village toward catastrophe.
Films like The Field, and why
The Playboys
shared rural drama, land ownership conflict, tragic intensity, and strong central performance
The Wind That Shakes the Barley
shared irish setting, pastoral hardship, family loyalty, and emotionally severe drama
Michael Collins
shared rural community pressure, inherited land, masculine pride, and brooding social realism
Movie Details
- Director
- Jim Sheridan
- Release Date
- 1990-09-21
- Runtime
- 110 min
- Rating
- 7.0 / 10 (107)
Cast
- Richard Harris
- John Hurt
- Sean Bean
- Frances Tomelty
- Brenda Fricker
- Ruth McCabe
- Brendan Gleeson
- Tom Berenger
- Sean McGinley
- Jer O'Leary
Common questions
- What is The Field about?
- An Irish farmer’s lifelong claim to ancestral land collides with foreign money, modernization, and the destructive force of pride.
- What is The Field like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Field as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is The Field violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in The Field as moderate.
- What did critics think of The Field?
- Critics recognized powerful performances and a grim rural allegory but broadly found the material overly theatrical, contrived, and melodramatic.
- Which films are like The Field?
- Films with a similar feel include The Playboys, The Wind That Shakes the Barley, and Michael Collins.
- How long is The Field?
- The Field runs 110 minutes.
