The Jealous God (2005) Movie Information:

The Jealous God (2005) Directed by: Steven Woodcock The Jealous God (2005) Written by: Steven Woodcock The Jealous God (2005) Cast: Jason Merrells, Denise Welch, Mairead Carty, Pamela Cundell, Andrew Dunn, Marcia Warren, William Ilkley, Pia Gabriele, Tony Barton, Roy Walker

The Jealous God (2005) U.S. Distributor: Not available at this time The Jealous God (2005) U.K. Distributor: Miracle Communications

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The Jealous God (2005) Synopsis:

In an industrial town in Yorkshire during the mid-1960s, Vincent Dungarven's mother wants him to be a Roman Catholic priest and he half thinks that he has the vocation. He is a reserved young man, a schoolmaster, and at thirty has never been in love. One day he visits the local library and encounters Laura, a new librarian. Fascinated by her beauty and charm, he overcomes his shyness and asks her out. She accepts and soon he falls passionately in love with her, for although she is a Protestant - which creates tensions for Vincent at home - she is everything he has longed for but never found. Vincent has two older brothers, Matthew and Paul. Both of them are married with children. At a wedding Laura is introduced to his mother; but during a talk with Paul at the reception afterwards, Vincent realizes that all is not what it seems, and the rest of his family has been talking behind his back. Vincent encounters Laura's eccentric flat mate Ruth, who makes a devastating revelation about Laura's personal life that shatters everything for him. As the twists of fate intensify and his dilemma grows. By the time the film reaches its emotionally-charged climax, he finds his world has been shaken to its foundation in the pursuit of passionate love, and another man's life has been destroyed so that he can get it.

The Jealous God (2005) Movie Review:

With an even more retro sensibility than Todd Haynes' Far From Heaven, Woodcock recreates the feeling of a 1960s morality tale, right down to the ad campaign. Watching it is like sitting in on a rainy Saturday night with a comforting melodrama on the telly.

West Yorkshire schoolteacher Vincent (Merrells) is a 30-year-old whose devoutly Catholic mother (Warren) still hopes he'll become a priest. But now he's falling for the new, non-Catholic librarian, Laura (Carty). Vincent's older brothers (Dunn and Ilkley) are both married to converted protestants (Welch and Gabriele). But this is worse: although Vincent is prepared to go against his religion in the name of love, there's a barrier to their romance that even he can't ignore. And Vincent has another problem even closer to home.

Based on a book by John Blaine (Room at the Top), the story is filmed in a straightforward style with as few frills as possible. Woodcock immaculately recreates 60s-style filmmaking, right down to a prudish tone that avoids actually mentioning any shocking issues by name and pans to the wallpaper when things get remotely steamy. The camera work is like a TV show--lots of moody close-ups and almost no stylistic flourishes besides a gritty recreation of the period. It's extremely effective--like travelling back in time, but with the added resonance of modern actors who combine knowing sensitivity with the overwrought drama.

Merrells is extremely likeable; we're willing to take his side even when he makes stupid decisions. Although it does seem odd that everyone accuses him of being icily intellectual and emotionless when he's quite clearly the most soulful person in the story. Other performances are more uneven--slightly too wrenching to connect with 21st century audiences, but with moments of real passion. Of the supporting cast, Warren is the most constantly surprising, adding an undercurrent of aching authenticity to an over-the-top, nagging mum. All of this swelling sentiment is a bit silly at times, and the religious conflict seems almost quaint from today's multi-faith perspective, but there's a strongly personal story in here, and the way it's told is remarkably inventive.

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The Jealous God (2005) review written by: Rich Cline