Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne Blu-ray Movie Review

Love hurts.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman February 17, 2021

“Passion” is one of those words that would seem to have one generally accepted definition by the public at large, but which has a veritable ton of subtext, as evidenced by its use in everything from films like The Passion of the Christ or The Passion of Joan of Arc to legendary compositions like Bach: Johannes-Passion and Bach: Matthaus-Passion. That evident disconnect comes courtesy of the interesting etymology of the word, which stems from the Latin root pati, which perhaps somewhat surprisingly (considering modern connotations of the term) means “suffering”. That explains its uses in the films and compositions mentioned above, and it perhaps illuminates a subliminal aspect to the way many people tend to think of “passion” in everyday circumstances, as an overpowering feeling or even lust. In other words, "passion" isn't necessarily a positive experience. The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne plays on the dichotomy of that titular noun rather brilliantly, as Judith (Maggie Smith, winner of the BAFTA Award for Best Actress for this performance) is indeed in the throes of both the "romantic" notions surrounding the term, while also dealing with her dysfunctional relationship with her Catholicism, which sees her stumbling in Jesus' footsteps as a kind of angry and bitter unwilling acolyte.

As commentator Neil Sinyard points out in his selected scene analysis offered as a supplement on this Blu-ray disc, the very opening of the film is not in the source novel by Brian Moore, but it instantly establishes several relevant facts about Judith. She’s seen as a little girl arriving unfashionably late to Mass, where she quickly develops the hiccups, leading to near physical abuse by her harridan Aunt D’Arcy (Wendy Hiller). The film then segues via an optical dissolve to the adult Judith, who is arriving at her new digs, a boarding house in Belfast run by a woman named Mrs. Rice (Marie Kean). There’s already a feeling of entropy about the situation, as if Judith has been swallowed whole by the gaping maw of fate and is slowly but surely being eaten alive by her circumstances. Despite that, Judith tends to put on airs, probably at least in part as a defensive mechanism.

The Rice home has its fair share of eccentric residents, including two relatives of Mrs. Rice. Her son Bernard (Ian McNeice) is a slovenly glutton whom Judith meets when he’s more or less half naked in Mrs. Rice’s parlor. It’s later revealed that Ian, hardly the paradigm of a fit, strapping young man, is involved with the facility’s young maid-housekeeper type, Mary (Rudi Davies). Also on hand is Mrs. Rice’s brother James Madden (Bob Hoskins, BAFTA Award winner for Best Actor for this performance in conjunction with his work in Who Framed Roger Rabbit), who has just returned to Northern Ireland after decades in the United States. He actually comes off as what a European sensibility might call an “ugly American”, someone fixated on surface appearances, and definitely “on the make”, in more ways than one.

A misapprehension on the part of James leads him to believe that Judith is substantially better off than she actually is, and his gigolo like tendencies kick into high gear. Judith, meanwhile, is shown to be self medicating with alcohol, and is therefore probably not able to think clearly about any ulterior motives James may have, instead nursing fantasies of a long delayed "happily ever after". All of this interpersonal drama tends to make The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne a kind of dour affair (no pun intended), but perhaps unexpectedly, there are dashes of humor running just beneath the surface here, at least for those who can peer through the suffocating sadness to see them.

Jack Clayton was a director who seemed drawn to stories about women in some kind of psychological disarray, as evidenced by any number of his films, including Room at the Top, The Innocents and The Pumpkin Eater (which offered Maggie Smith a quasi-cameo, which she discusses in one of the supplements included on this disc). The film is definitely an actors' showcase, as is perhaps made evident by how the Academy in their native England feted Smith and Hoskins. That said, there may be perhaps less of the "saving grace" that some religiously minded people might assume would be part and parcel of any "passion". As such, The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne might come off as its own peculiar trip to Purgatory, rather than the happier climes of Heaven.

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Powerhouse Films' Indicator imprint with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 1.75:1. The back cover of this release touts a "new 2K restoration by Powerhouse Films from the original negative, supervised and approved by cinematographer Peter Hannan", though the insert booklet contains a bit more detailed information, as follows:

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne was restored by Powerhouse Films at Final Frame Post, London. The film's original 35mm camera negative was scanned at 4K. Colour correction work was supervised and approved by cinematographer Peter Hannan. Restoration work was undertaken at 2K to remove dirt and unstable frames. The film's stereo audio [sic] was remastered from the original 35mm optical soundtrack element.

This is by and large a beautiful looking presentation, one with good, consistent densities, solid contrast and appealing detail levels. The film does have more than its fair share of opticals, including quite a few dissolves, and grain occasionally takes on a slightly chunky yellowish quality during some of these transitions, as should probably be expected. There are a few other moments that are on the fuzzy side as well which aren't necessarily related to opticals, but generally speaking, this looks admirably organic with excellent clarity. While the verbiage in the insert booklet suggests attempts were taken to remove unstable frames, there is recurrent wobbliness on display. It's noticeable right off the bat with the HandMade Films masthead, but for eagle eyed viewers, you can notice tiny but still discernable vertical instability that may be especially apparent in some of the outdoor material where things like horizon lines are visible in the background.

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne features a nice sounding LPCM Mono track. The film features a wonderful score by Clayton's preferred composer Georges Delerue (Neil Sinyard in his selected scene commentary gets into how distraught Clayton was when the "wise men" at Disney jettisoned Delerue's score for Clayton's film version of Something Wicked This Way Comes), which sounds warm and full bodied throughout. Dialogue and occasional ambient environmental effects are rendered without any problems whatsoever. Optional English subtitles are available.

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Judith Hearne Remembered (HD; 26:21) features some enjoyable interviews with Maggie Smith, Ian McNiece and Rudi Davies.


• Selected Scenes Commentary with Neil Sinyard (HD; 32:33) features the author of British Film Makers: Jack Clayton.


• Original Trailer (HD; 3:01)


• Image Gallery (HD) features promotional and publicity material.

Additionally, a really nicely appointed insert booklet offers essays by Pauline Kael and Bethan Roberts, and excerpts from a 1988 interview with Jack Clayton, along with the typical cast and crew information, contemporary reviews which came out at the time of the release, and technical data.

The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

I kind of half jokingly mentioned in my recent Our Little Sister Blu-ray review how that film might be a cinematic "palette cleanser" after all the trauma a lot of us have been through for the past year (plus). If you're not overwhelmed by your own "real life" and are willing to invest some time with some obviously pretty badly damaged characters, The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne offers another master class in screen acting technique by the formidable Maggie Smith, with Bob Hoskins also doing memorable work. Technical merits are generally solid, and the supplementary package very well done. Recommended.