Ryan's Daughter 4K 1970 Ultra HD 2160p

The story takes place after the 1916 Easter Rising. A married woman from a small Irish village begins an affair with a troubled British officer.

User Review

Beautiful seashells on the Irish coast. The stormy sea murmurs gently. How pleasant it is to gaze at the blue sky. What could possibly happen in the rural backwoods? But events take an unexpected turn: when the headstrong Rosie Ryan becomes disillusioned with her marriage, a mysterious, handsome officer visits the village—a man who suffered a severe concussion during the war, leaving him prone to periodic panic attacks. Did Tom the innkeeper’s daughter, as she cheated on her elderly husband, know what her flight toward an illusory salvation would lead to? Against the backdrop of this tragic love triangle, a secret sabotage campaign flares up, led by the uncompromising and widely respected Tim O’Leary. Passions run high: the stern Father Collins rushes to the rescue; a distraught schoolteacher tries to forgive his unfaithful wife; and somewhere, the local fool sits with a stick of dynamite, mistaking it for a toy. A storm is brewing…

Legendary figures created this epic film, which pierces the soul with the poignant poetry of its imagery; it is an unforgettable dream that resurfaces in the memory again and again, refusing to let go of the defeated viewer. A cinematic knockout from maestro David Lean. This remarkable artist created only 17 films over the course of 83 years, yet he etched his name into history forever with just a few of them. No film buff can overlook *The Bridge on the River Kwai*, *Doctor Zhivago*, *A Passage to India*, and, of course, his most famous signature work—the immortal *Lawrence of Arabia*. His longtime collaborators—cinematographer Freddie Young and composer Maurice Jarre—each won three Oscars for their work, while screenwriter Robert Bolt gifted the world with classic stories that remain timeless even in an era dominated by television series and the all-knowing Internet. Good grief, these are truly great, great creators—and we haven’t even gotten to the stunning cast yet! When you watch the film, you’re captivated, enthralled, and delighted by the carefully measured, unhurried pace of the narrative, the charming landscapes, the immense symbolism towering over the young viewer, and the subtle irony tinged with bitterness, for despite all its cheerful lyricism, this is a brutal story about Ireland and its people, about fateful actions and terrible consequences, about the absurd balance between courageous honesty and cowardly lies—“Ryan’s Daughter” simultaneously lifts you up and plunges you into the abyss. But in any case, it is a film that is simply impossible to forget. It is the Irish answer to John Ford’s Welsh “How Green Was My Valley”—and a very worthy one at that.

An aging Robert Mitchum convincingly portrays a confused, depressed, and abandoned husband—in this unbearably sad portrayal, the familiar “tough guy” that the charismatic actor once played to the delight of audiences in his youth is almost unrecognizable. Here we see a different Mitchum, a completely different one, and yet there is something about his character that compels us to genuinely empathize with him; this understated performance is rich with nuances—so many that you can’t catch them all on a first viewing. It’s a masterful, exemplary performance. Not to be outdone by her co-star is the young but devilishly seductive Sarah Miles—perhaps she’s the very reason one would truly need to get involved in dangerous games, defend her from a frenzied mob, and bear an invisible cross for her sins. Echoing her charm is Christopher Jones—whose frail officer, Randolph Dorian, limping and trembling at the memory of bombings on the battlefield, turns out to be the true law of the village, just as its rough-around-the-edges but just Father Collins serves as its sole moral compass, striving to restrain the people’s frenzy and their mad descent into a living hell. Trevor Howard’s piercing gaze scans you from the screen like an X-ray, and you can’t help but shudder, hiding one sin after another—and yet another—that’s been lying hidden who knows where, in order to avoid the priest’s righteous wrath. The spirited Barry Foster as the leader of the rebellion and the good-natured Leo McCern as Thomas Ryan bring their own charm to the film—disarming audacity and desperate pity.

But despite all the genius of director David Lean and the virtuosity of the entire film crew, what makes *Ryan’s Daughter* an unforgettable story is the outstanding performance by John Mills, who spent half his life playing military men—and—bam! —he appears on screen before the astonished audience as a mute, simple-minded fisherman, whose jaw juts out so far that you can’t look at him without shuddering, and whose gait is so peculiar that it’s hard to understand how this small, sickly little man manages to make a living as a fisherman, living among giggling girls and smirking boys who mock him, treating him not as a human being but as an object to be thrown as far as possible. Without uttering a single word throughout the entire film, the comical figure of John Mills makes a difficult journey into the viewer’s heart. To watch a person walk away the way Mills does… It makes you want to grab a sledgehammer and break the villagers’ legs. Silly Michael, playing with dynamite, who considers a young officer his friend simply because he, too, limps, and who vainly longs to find happiness with Rosie Ryan. This little man, who doesn’t realize what he’s doing, wants to love and be loved, and his laughable attempts reveal the true face of humanity, offering flowers that have long since died.

Oh, “Ryan's Daughter,” why won’t you leave me alone? I know, I know your answer. Sometimes romanticism kills more powerfully than realism. But it kills so slowly and beautifully… Damn it!

Info Video

Codec: HEVC / H.265 (93.3 Mb/s)
Resolution: Native 4K (2160p)
HDR: Dolby Vision, HDR10
Aspect ratio: 2.20:1
Original aspect ratio: 2.20:1

Info Audio

#English: DTS-HD Master Audio 4.0
#English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit)
#English: Dolby Digital 2.0 (Commentary)

Info Subtitles