English summary

A moral satire, full of stifled passion and imbued with witty dialogues, about the life of one of America’s most famous poets: Emily Dickinson (1830 – 1886).  

Although Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) is both famous and infamous in American literature, she was not fully appreciated until after her death. Her public face was that of a protofeminist who  dared call into question both religious and social dogma, and she was frequently sharp-tongued.

We first meet Emily in her teen years, at the moment when she decides to resist her evangelical upbringing – to the chagrin of her puritanical teacher and conservative father. Then the focus of the movie shifts to her private life, surrounded by her loyal sister and her adulterous brother, on the family estate in Amherst, Massachusetts. Cynthia Nixon deserves a round of applause for her portrayal of Emily.  The wonderfully ironic dialogues are amusing and very British, making A Quiet Passion a moral satire full of stifled passion – and reaffirming Terence Davies as one of the greats of the seventh art.