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The Field

The Field

Drama · 1990

"Bull" McCabe's family has farmed a field for generations, sacrificing much in the name of the land. When the widow who owns the field decides to sell it in a public auction, McCabe knows that he must own it. While no local dare bid against him, a wealthy American decides he requires the field to build a highway. "Bull" and his son decide they must try to convince the American to let go of his ambition and return home, but the consequences of their plot prove sinister.

Movie details

The Field

“It Owns Him...It Possesses Him...And It Could Even Destroy Him”

1990 Drama 1h 50m

Critical arithmetic

The consensus, allegedly.

IMDb

7.3 / 10

7.2K votes

Rotten Tomatoes

43 %

Tomatometer

TMDB

7.0 / 10

Community rating

External scores via OMDb · CC BY-NC 4.0. Values normalized for display; availability varies by title.

"Bull" McCabe's family has farmed a field for generations, sacrificing much in the name of the land. When the widow who owns the field decides to sell it in a public auction, McCabe knows that he must own it. While no local dare bid against him, a wealthy American decides he requires the field to build a highway. "Bull" and his son decide they must try to convince the American to let go of his ambition and return home, but the consequences of their plot prove sinister.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Field?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

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Where it lives

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Jim Sheridan

Written by

Jim Sheridan

Richard Harris

Richard Harris

'Bull' McCabe

John Hurt

John Hurt

Bird' O'Donnell

Sean Bean

Sean Bean

Tadgh McCabe

Frances Tomelty

Frances Tomelty

Widow

Brenda Fricker

Brenda Fricker

Maggie McCabe

Ruth McCabe

Ruth McCabe

Tinker Woman

Brendan Gleeson

Brendan Gleeson

Quarryman

Court is in session

Put The Field on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.