Michael Radny Going into this film I was expecting a pretty bland drama that I could plop along to. To my surprise, The Magdalene Sisters proves to be much better than your standard redemption drama. Whether it is the compelling characters or the story, The Magdalene Sisters managed to have me gripped to the chair and truly engage in the story (something I have not done in many years).Everyone in this film has a distinct character; love them or hate them. The true hell of these asylums is portrayed so well that by the end of the film you just pray that people will never do anyone such injustice again. One of the great films of the 21st century.

Joe T As already well noted, this is a very well crafted film that captures and portrays some of the lowest possibilities of human endeavour. The movie has it's flaws, but drawing empathy from the viewer is not one of them and this it does so well that I was emotionally exhausted by the end of it.The religious dimension of the film is an interesting one. Clearly people wanting opportunity for anti-Catholic or anti-religious diatribe would find plenty of fuel here, but I think the more reasonable viewer (religious or not) would see the issues raised for what they are - a perversion and distortion of Christian faith perpetuated and maintained by flawed institutional systems. In this vein, it's not necessarily an anti-religious film and not even anti-establishment as such, but it does show a terrible side of those things and, moreover, illustrate how human beings can take any ideology, belief system etc. and turn it to meet their own personal sadistic and evil ends.A sad and horrible film and one that reminds us all of what not do to, how not to treat people and how we should be ever vigilant as a society against evil and cruelty no matter the guise it takes.

thinker1691 Throughout the nineteen fifties and sixties, there were hundreds of institutions throughout America, England and Ireland which indicated centers dedicated to the Christian God. A significant number of these places were later revealed to have been of sanctuaries of corruption and pain. This movie selects one called " The Magdalene Sisters. " Although set in Irland, there are hundreds throughout the world which were run the same way and by the same religious orders. The story originates with writer/Director Peter Mullan who was inspired by a true incident which took place in such an establishment. Four Irish girls are sent to the isolated asylum run by the Magdalene sisters. There they undergo such brutal treatment, ridicule and torturous punishment as a means to curb their unsocial behavior, such as 'looking too pretty.' There is Margaret (Anne Duff) Crispina (Eileen Walsh) Rose (Dorothy Duffy) and Bernaddette (Nora-Jane Noon). All the young girls are constantly mistreated like hapless slaves as they are systematically dehumanized, forced to wash, clean, scrub floors, clothes and endure physical, mental and sexual anguish. Each day, they accept their suffering and silent plight, dreaming of eventual escape. Watching this movie is difficult, but having been exposed to the same brutality, believable in every respect. ****

hkyriazi What struck me about this movie, aside from its moving portrayal of these women and the brutality and humiliation they had to endure, was that it didn't contain a single sympathetic portrayal of the male gender. I wonder if the writer was a misandrist. The closest thing to a decent male character was Margaret's brother, who inquired where she was being taken at the beginning, and rescued her at the end (for which he was unfairly lambasted by her for taking too long to grow up). A close second was the fellow who almost helped Bernadette escape (despite his very crude behavior when first introduced).In terms of being anti-Catholic, it certainly wasn't purely so, as I could discern areas where they tried to show a few of the nuns as having some concern for their charges (in between beatings and humiliations).When I learned that one of the women in the documentary commented that things were much worse than the film portrayed, it made me wonder whether that was simply her perception, or whether it was accurate. I find it hard to believe that all those nuns had been turned into the moral equivalent of Nazi prison guards. What was believable was that the women who endured that treatment were unable afterwards to form harmonious marriages, and some avoided marriage altogether, to avoid letting anyone ever again have that kind of power over them.Anyway, I enjoyed watching first the hour-long documentary, and the next night the film itself. If you're prone to bouts of depression, though, hide the razor blades, and think how far we've advanced since those dark times, not so very long ago.