Midwinter Break is a quiet understated film, one that a lot of people might miss and the type of film that I honestly love. When I saw the cast, Ciaran Hinds and Lesley Mannville, I knew I’d want to see it. It is a beautiful story about emotional connection with superb performances.
Midwinter Break is a drama film directed by Polly Findlay. The film is based on the 2017 novel of the same name by Bernard MacLaverty. The film follows a couple, Stella (Lesley Mannville) and Gerry (Ciaran Hinds), as they travel on a trip to Amsterdam that stirs up memories of their past in Ireland. It also highlights the emotional disconnect between the pair in a stirring meditation on faith, commitment and the enduring power of love, especially over a long period of time.
One of the aspects of Midwinter Break that is especially well written is the disconnect between Stella and Gerry. Stella goes to church while Gerry stays home drinking. Stella wants to explore her faith while Gerry wants to believe in humanity more. Stella believes in miracles, Gerry believes in people. Moreover, Gerry seems unable to speak with Stella about her sorrows or find a way to connect beyond the physical. The slow build of emotional distance between the pair is what makes the film powerful and the performances nuanced.
The story is fairly straightforward at the beginning. Stella plans a trip to Amsterdam for the two of them during winter. But as they travel and explore the city, long forgotten memories come to both of them, as they remember their lives prior to leaving Ireland. Stella is also keeping her emotions from Gerry but they come bubbling out as she tries to escape her memories of Ireland. It is in the secrets and the silences that the film comes alive. If you’ve been married a long time, you will absolutely understand those silences, all the words not said because you love the other person. That is the beauty of this film, how well it understands the power of love, especially over time. 
Lesley Mannville and Ciaran Hinds are at their absolute best in this movie. They are the highlight of the film and their performances are superb. Lesley as Stella gives an understated emotional performance that captures her pain and her faith, her frustrations with her husband. Whereas Ciaran Hinds gives a powerful performance that demonstrates Gerry’s emotional constipation but also his ability to see beauty in Stella and the physical world around them. Both are insightful performances, quiet portrayals that are beautifully emotional. 
One of the aspects that is frustrating is how slow the film is to build, however, and how long it takes before we find out what incident caused the pair to leave their home country of Ireland. The writing gives us hints but doesn’t show us the full trauma until toward the latter half of the film which to me is a mistake. While the performances do make up for it and it helps demonstrate the emotional disconnect between Stella and Gerry, more information would have helped the film shine a bit more.
If you like drama films about older couples struggling with connection and marriage, I did find this emotionally impactful. Both Ciaran Hinds and Lesley Mannville give us superb performances with a nuanced story full of emotional struggles and powerful moments. It might be slow but the ending is beautiful.
Rating: 4 out of 5 holding hands.
Leave a Reply