Demi Moore stars as Hester Prynne, a sensual, spirited young woman who arrives in a small Puritan town in New England to prepare a home for the upcoming arrival of her husband. There she meets the sensitive and appealing town minister, Rev. Dimmesdale (Gary Oldman), with whom she shares an undeniable attraction. When events soon reveal that Hester’s husband has been attacked by Indians and is presumed dead, neither Hester nor Dimmesdale can suppress their feelings anymore and a forbidden affair ignites. Upon discovering Hester is pregnant, the intolerant townspeople brand her an adulteress and, when she refuses to reveal the identity of her lover, they force her to wear a scarlet letter “A” on her dress as a brand of shame. Loosely based on the novel by Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Content notification
Our collection comprises over 40,000 moving image works, acquired and catalogued between the 1940s and early 2000s. As a result, some items may reflect outdated, offensive and possibly harmful views and opinions. ACMI is working to identify and redress such usages.
Learn more about our collection and our collection policy here. If you come across harmful content on our website that you would like to report, let us know.
How to watch
Stream, rent or buy via
Collection
In ACMI's collection
Credits
Collection metadata
ACMI Identifier
308527
Language
English
Audience classification
M (15+)
Subject categories
Family, Gender Identity, Relationships & Sexuality → Adultery
Feature films → Feature films - United States
Literature → American literature - Film and video adaptations
Sound/audio
Sound
Colour
Colour
Holdings
VHS; Access Print (Section 1)