Dragonwyck
A simple Connecticut farm girl is recruited by a distant relative, an aristocratic patroon, to be governess to his young daughter in his Hudson Valley mansion. In 1844, Abigail Wells receives a reques…
Dragonwyck
A simple Connecticut farm girl is recruited by a distant relative, an aristocratic patroon, to be governess to his young daughter in his Hudson Valley mansion. In 1844, Abigail Wells receives a request from her previously-unknown wealthy distant cousin Nicholas Van Ryn, and she and her husband Ephraim Wells, a devout but poor Connecticut farmer who owns his own land, reluctantly allow one of their daughters, Miranda, the one with wanderlust, to accept the position of companion to Nicholas and his wife Johanna's 8-year-old daughter Katrine at Dragonwyck, the Van Ryn manor in the Hudson Valley. The Wells are reluctant to send Miranda because Nicholas doesn't believe in God, which would be a drastic shock to her; also, Nicholas' tenant farmers are beholden to him and not allowed to work toward purchasing from him any land of his on which they farm. Upon her arrival at the Van Ryn manor, Miranda catches the eye of young physician Dr. Jeff Turner. This does not sit well with Nicholas; not only is Jeff a vocal supporter of tenant-farmer rights, but he also has eyes for Miranda--whose eyes are turned in Nicholas' direction--as the openly odd interactions between Nicholas, Johanna and even Katrine stem from an absence of love. What happens in the manor is affected in part by Nicholas' goal as a father; not achieving that goal might result in adverse consequences, the changing times of land ownership, and long-held secrets at the manor. —Huggo On May 19, 1844, innocent farm girl Miranda, raised in a repressive God-fearing Connecticut family, summons up the courage to go against the will of her puritanical father. However, as Miranda accepts an invitation from distant cousin Nicholas Van Ryn to stay at his majestic Dragonwyck Manor--a gloomy, memory-laden mansion that has been home to the Van Ryns for two centuries--hair-raising secrets start to unfold, and misfortune befalls the House of Van Ryn. Little by little, affection turns into cruelty and love into a deadly obsession. Is the dream of a bright future turning sour? —Nick Riganas When a simple but adventurous young woman from a devout Connecticut farming family becomes the companion to the daughter of a wealthy distant cousin at Dragonwyck manor in the Hudson Valley, she is confronted by the eerie, forlorn history of the manor and also becomes intimately tied to its fate. —vernehenzel In 1844, farmer's daughter Miranda Wells is invited by distant relation Nicholas Van Ryn to live in his mansion as companion to his daughter. Arriving with high hopes, Miranda finds the Van Ryns a bit strange. The parents barely know their daughter Katrine; Nicholas faces a revolt of his tenant farmers; the servants hint darkly of curses and visitations. And what does Nicholas really do up in his tower room? —Rod Crawford <puffinus@u.washington.edu>
Dragonwyck
Drama,Mystery,Romance
Film Details
A simple Connecticut farm girl is recruited by a distant relative, an aristocratic patroon, to be governess to his young daughter in his Hudson Valley mansion. In 1844, Abigail Wells receives a request from her previously-unknown wealthy distant cousin Nicholas Van Ryn, and she and her husband Ephraim Wells, a devout but poor Connecticut farmer who owns his own land, reluctantly allow one of their daughters, Miranda, the one with wanderlust, to accept the position of companion to Nicholas and his wife Johanna's 8-year-old daughter Katrine at Dragonwyck, the Van Ryn manor in the Hudson Valley. The Wells are reluctant to send Miranda because Nicholas doesn't believe in God, which would be a drastic shock to her; also, Nicholas' tenant farmers are beholden to him and not allowed to work toward purchasing from him any land of his on which they farm.
Upon her arrival at the Van Ryn manor, Miranda catches the eye of young physician Dr. Jeff Turner. This does not sit well with Nicholas; not only is Jeff a vocal supporter of tenant-farmer rights, but he also has eyes for Miranda--whose eyes are turned in Nicholas' direction--as the openly odd interactions between Nicholas, Johanna and even Katrine stem from an absence of love.
What happens in the manor is affected in part by Nicholas' goal as a father; not achieving that goal might result in adverse consequences, the changing times of land ownership, and long-held secrets at the manor. —Huggo On May 19, 1844, innocent farm girl Miranda, raised in a repressive God-fearing Connecticut family, summons up the courage to go against the will of her puritanical father. However, as Miranda accepts an invitation from distant cousin Nicholas Van Ryn to stay at his majestic Dragonwyck Manor--a gloomy, memory-laden mansion that has been home to the Van Ryns for two centuries--hair-raising secrets start to unfold, and misfortune befalls the House of Van Ryn.
Little by little, affection turns into cruelty and love into a deadly obsession. Is the dream of a bright future turning sour? —Nick Riganas When a simple but adventurous young woman from a devout Connecticut farming family becomes the companion to the daughter of a wealthy distant cousin at Dragonwyck manor in the Hudson Valley, she is confronted by the eerie, forlorn history of the manor and also becomes intimately tied to its fate. —vernehenzel In 1844, farmer's daughter Miranda Wells is invited by distant relation Nicholas Van Ryn to live in his mansion as companion to his daughter.
Arriving with high hopes, Miranda finds the Van Ryns a bit strange. The parents barely know their daughter Katrine; Nicholas faces a revolt of his tenant farmers; the servants hint darkly of curses and visitations. And what does Nicholas really do up in his tower room? —Rod Crawford <puffinus@u.washington.edu>.