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The Crucible tells the story of what happened in Salem, Massachusetts in 1692, when 24 people were executed for witchery. The movie begins by taking us into the scene that starts the problems, a scene you won't find in the stage play--a midnight ceremony in the woods by a dozen or more girls. The camera moves with the girls as they run through the forest, capturing their giddy excitement. For most of the girls, the ceremony they conduct, led by a Haitian slave, is nothing more than a girlish prank where they reveal the names of the men that they secretly love. But for at least one of the girls, Abigail Williams (Winona Ryder), this ceremony is an opportunity to let her sexual frustration break loose. She kills a chicken and rubs blood on her face. Some girls scream in horror, others laugh, and others strip naked and begin to dance. Unfortunately for the girls, Reverend Parris (Bruce Davison) sees their shenanigans and breaks up their party. The girls scream and flee through the forest. But he has seen them and how can the girls cover-up their actions? By lying, of course, and saying they were consorting with the devil; for in the strange logic of this Puritanical society, confessing means you're exonerated. And before you know it, half the town is locked away in jail, accused of witchery, while judges from Boston, led by Judge Danforth (Paul Scofield), exact their lethal brand of justice.
Contrasted with the public spectacle of trials and executions, we also get the quieter personal moments in the Proctor household. As the object of Abigail's past affections, John Proctor (Daniel Day-Lewis) refuses to yield to her temptation. ("I will cut off my hand before I reach for you again," he says.) But staying true to his wife Elizabeth (Joan Allen) can be fatal in Salem in 1692, particularly when a teenager (Ryder) pines for him and threatens to accuse his wife of witchery if he doesn't satisfy her own desires.
Opening up the play makes the girls seem smaller, but also more real. If you're going to The Crucible to see the hysterics of girls screaming "Witch!", you might be disappointed. The Crucible doesn't play these scenes for maximum melodramatic impact. Instead we see a town that doesn't by and large believe the girls, but finds they also can't disregard the claims of witchery either. With some members of the local clergy seeing the opportunity to seize lands that they can't take legally and other members attempting to cover-up what really happened in the woods, The Crucible becomes a terrifying tale of the failure of religion. In The Crucible religion is used like a sword for petty material gain by some and as a shroud for obscuring the truth by others. Even the death of townsfolk means little to some of the pious Salem clergy in power. We see petty bickering over firewood and frustration over fruitless meetings and the drama takes on a surprisingly contemporary ring to it.
Director Hynter and writer Miller succeed most strongly when they show how the events quickly snowball until the witch trials can't be stopped--even when few people actually believe the charges are true. As the judges encourage claims of witchery by alternating beatings with soft words of encouragement--and giving hallelujahs when the accused finally confess to having seen townsfolk consorting with the devil--we see just how easily the initial situation takes on a life of its own.
John Proctor............................ DANIEL DAY-LEWIS
Abigail................................. WINONA RYDER
Judge Danforth.......................... PAUL SCOFIELD
Elizabeth Proctor....................... JOAN ALLEN
Reverend Parris......................... BRUCE DAVISON
Reverend Hale........................... ROB CAMPBELL
Thomas Putnam........................... JEFFREY JONES
Ann Putnam.............................. FRANCES CONROY
Tituba.................................. CHARLAYNE WOODARD
Judge Sewall............................ GEORGE GAYNES
Giles Corey............................. PETER VAUGHAN
Mary Warren............................. KARRON GRAVES
Directed by............................. NICHOLAS HYTNER
