The Mary Magdalene Sisters

Kejos said:haha, nice post

Thanks. Much appreciated... 👋

Karen White8 said:As a standalone movie, I found it pretty tedious, shallow, and heavily biased. It feels like the writing falls into this trap where every woman is portrayed as either a pure, saintly victim or a sadistic maniac who spends all day counting her cash and plotting ways to make sinners suffer.

Sure, the characterization is incredibly black-and-white, but since the film is based on a true story, those three women were likely actually like that. And let’s be honest, Margaret isn't exactly a saint herself. 😉 That said, calling them "poor victims" is a stretch for absolutely every woman trapped in that place. I mean, who honestly thinks they have the right to throw a woman into a hellhole just because she flirted with guys, was assaulted, or had a child out of wedlock? Even if someone lived a wild lifestyle, who gives anyone the authority to judge them that harshly?

steelstag4 said:Look, the characterization might be pretty black-and-white, but since the movie is based on a true story, those three girls probably were exactly like that. And let’s be honest, Margaret isn't exactly a saint.😉 But calling them all "poor little victims" is a stretch for anyone who ended up there. I mean, who gets to decide that a girl deserves to be sent to a place like that just because she flirted with guys, was assaulted, or had a baby out of wedlock? Even if they were incredibly promiscuous, who are we to judge?

If I recall correctly, the film is set during the 1960s. Honestly, stuff like this still happens today.

silentridge8 said:If I recall correctly, the movie is set during the 1960s. And honestly, things like that are still happening even today.

Yeah, if my memory serves, the plot kicks off around '63 or '64.
But what do you mean by "still happening today"? According to the end credits, that last "laundromat" shut its doors back in '96. Unless, of course, there’s some modern-day equivalent out there that operates just like it did back then.

steelstag4 said:Yeah, I think the timeline starts around '63 or '64.
What do you mean by "to this day"? That last laundry facility didn't close until 1996 AD. At least, that's what the movie claims at the end. Unless there's some similar setup still running somewhere.

My point was about child abuse—how kids were mistreated in these homes, and none of them were actually owned by KC. There’s just way too little conversation about this, and honestly, most people don't even know it happened.

That said, when I say "these things happen to this day," I’m mostly talking about the mindset of people—that general indifference. Reading through this thread has been pretty disheartening because that exact mentality keeps popping up.

(...) I was glad to watch yet another film that exposes the Catholic Church. We need more movies like this.

(...) though I know once I see it, I'll be absolutely livid and even more worked up against the church. (...) they're all the same.

I dragged my mother—who is a religious fanatic, by the way—to the theater yesterday (...) Kudos to Mullan for having the guts to attack the Church so sharply. I've always hated the Church as an institution, but after this film, I hate it even more. (...)

Some people just don't care about social injustice or the fact that people were left traumatized. They couldn't care less about it or how to fix it; they just want to sit back and hate. As long as people think that way, nothing is ever going to change.

Just a quick heads-up for anyone who hasn't seen it yet—this movie is playing at the AMC theater over in Canada 1 tonight at 8:00 PM!

(Which is great news for me, considering I can't make it to the cinema 😁 )

What’s the verdict on this true story about how they used to punish "wayward" girls in those strict convents?
Anyone catch it?🙂

I was just sitting there watching this on DVD last night.
And man, what can I even say? The movie really says it all, but it’s those girls' lives—those stories and the trauma they were left with—that just hits you the hardest.

Huh, and here I was thinking my guy had finally left my side...🤔

😁

I was hooked from the very first scene—that wedding where you see all those raw, unpolished, totally real faces.
Even the girls themselves feel so retro, so old-school, and just incredibly convincing.
It’s pretty obvious how much the director is critiquing that whole hyper-conservative, brutal system, even if he doesn't go overboard by picking on specific characters or dragging us through endless misery.

Honestly, you wouldn't believe it if you didn't know that the last one of those "cleansing" institutions in Ireland didn't even close down until 1966...

northernfalcon30 said:It’s honestly hard to wrap my head around the fact that one of those last "cleansing" institutions in Ireland didn't even shut down until 1966...

Exactly. And honestly, the absolute worst part about this whole story—the thing that just guts me—is that it’s all true. Like, actually happened. It’s infuriating thinking about how some parents were such total lowlifes, turning their backs while these decent girls were treated so incredibly poorly...

I agree that the movie doesn't overdo the exploitation. The director didn't feel the need to go overboard with it; he stuck to the raw essentials—just strict discipline, endless labor, a little bit of physical abuse, and maybe a few cigarettes here and there. 😉

The movie carries this heavy scent of old-fashioned soap our great-grandmothers used to use, maybe a little cracked down the middle from the humidity...

(A little synesthesia never hurt anyone, right?😉 )

Anyway, I just can't wrap my head around those parents, it was honestly heartbreaking..😢
Trading honor for a bit of peace...it happens too often

northernfalcon30 said:It’s hard to wrap your head around the fact that one of those last "cleansing" institutions in Ireland didn't shut down until 1966.

1996.
And this discussion was already a thing back then.😉

Oh, please. We're talking about 1996 AD😉 , back when everyone in '66 was still going full throttle!
I mean, I went hunting for the thread under T, S, and M, but came up totally empty... and even if it did exist, it wouldn't be that hard to just merge them, right?😉

Watched it last night. I really liked 👍

It’s clear the director wasn't trying to be sensationalist just for the sake of it; the goal was to show the truth... and the truth is horrific enough on its own😢

I agree with northernfalcon30 regarding the characters—they were simple, which made them feel more authentic.

Some people even claim certain women protested because the film actually softened what really went down there. It could definitely be worse...

The thread is titled The Magdalene Sisters, and while it’s filed under "M," the main index lists it as The Magdalene Sisters 😁



Hey mods, you guys seem to be tripping up a bit with how you're categorizing films that start with "The." It makes them a real pain to track down in the directory.

An excellent, deeply unsettling film.
I found the sociological undertones particularly striking—specifically that moment when one of the girls actually has a chance to escape, yet she chooses not to.
As for the parents, to echo what someone else mentioned earlier: they are simply acting out of pure desperation.
In any case, I wish I were still attending religious services so I could ask a priest for their official take on this, especially since I’ve heard there was quite a massive stir over at the Vatican regarding the subject...

Good grief, that movie left me absolutely reeling... 😲 The casting was just masterfully executed... personally, I felt like all the girls were completely raw and vulnerable... such a gripping story... and the way they filmed it, it had this incredible, almost documentary-style grit to it... 😉

Just 4 The Record will be playing for free at the local independent cinema near Central Park this Thursday, March 31, 2005, starting at 9:00 PM.

Honestly, if you find yourself with some downtime on your hands and you've got a craving for some top-tier drama, I’d say go ahead and give it a watch! 😉