The Scarlet Letter

1995 • 135 minutes

About this movie

Sexy Demi Moore heats up this powerfully sensual story of illicit love! In a time when adultery is punishable by death, Hester Prynne (Moore) becomes involved in a risky and scandalous affair with her town's handsome minister (Gary Oldman). But when their secret passion results in a child, Hester is confronted with the town's overwhelming scorn ... and is condemned to forever wear the scarlet letter "A" as a public brand of shame! A highly provocative retelling of the classic tale of forbidden love, THE SCARLET LETTER combines a sizzling story with exciting stars and delivers must-see entertainment.

Ratings and reviews

I'm sorry but this was an absolute atrocity. In my opinion, the only saving grace was Gary Oldman. Even then, this movie adaptation lacks everything that made the book so wonderful. The book was all about guilt, shame, hypocrisy, regret, etc. How guilt can actually tear some people up on the inside forcing an external yet hidden purge. A strong woman and a cowardly man.. This movie lacked everything...It was turned into a silly period soap opera.

Simply put, while it stands as a fine movie in its own right, as an adaptation of The Scarlet Letter novel, it is simply terrible. Jaffe strips out all of the original themes of guilt and concealment in favor of an illicit romance. Frankly, the only thing this takes from the original novel is the names of the characters.

A poor excuse for a book adaption to one of the greatest novels ever written and a horrible film on its own.