Oilman Jan is paralyzed in an accident. His wife, who prayed for his return, feels guilty; even more, when Jan urges her to have sex with another.
Drama set in a repressed, deeply religious community in the north of Scotland, where a naive young woman named Bess McNeil meets and falls in love with Danish oil-rig worker Jan. Bess and Jan are deeply in love but, when Jan returns to his rig, Bess prays to God that he returns for good. Jan does return, his neck broken in an accident aboard the rig. Because of his condition, Jan and Bess are now unable to enjoy a sexual relationship and Jan urges Bess to take another lover and tell him the details. As Bess becomes more and more deviant in her sexual behavior, the more she comes to believe that her actions are guided by God and are helping Jan recover.—Jonathan Broxton <[email protected]>
Bess McNeill is a young woman living in a conservative coastal village in Scotland. Against the wishes of her church she marries Jan, a Scandinavian worker on an oil rig. She is insanely in love with Jan and can't bear it when he leaves to do his shift on the oil rig. Then Jan is injured at work and everything changes.—grantss
Bess McNeill, a Scottish lass living in a small town in the highlands, is considered mentally simple. A devout Calvinist like most in her town, she often speaks to her version of God, who, channeling through her in return, often chastises her for what she considers her selfishness in always wanting more than she has. Despite the objections of the church elders, Bess marries Jan Nyman, a Dane, a North Sea oil rig worker and an atheist. Jan away working on the rig more often than he will be in Scotland with her, Bess does not handle his absence well, she, in one of those conversations with God, asking him to send Jan home sooner than the ten days she has to wait from the time of that conversation. Due to the circumstances of that visit home by Jan, Bess goes to extraordinary lengths to prove her devotion to God by also proving her complete love for Jan, she certain of the desired outcome in the end, which most people looking in would, and do, consider irrational.—Huggo
Chapter 1 - Bess Gets Married: In a backward religious village in the north of Scotland, the naive, immature, pure, susceptible, repressed and emotionally unstable Bess McNeill gets married with Danish worker Jan Nyman that works on a drilling rig. Chapter 2 - Life with Jan: Bess has a wonderful honeymoon with Jan, making love everywhere with her beloved husband. Chapter 3 - Life Alone: Jan has to embark to work in the oil-rig and Bess misses him. She prays to God to send Jan back home. There is a blowout in the drill deck and Jan is seriously injured, becoming completely paralyzed and the doctor diagnoses that he would never walk again. Chapter 4 - Jan's Illness: Bess talks to God and blames herself for the accident of her husband. Jan tries to convince her to have sex with other men. The three remaining chapters see Bess and Jan's life evolve.—Claudio Carvalho, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
BREAKING the WAVESThe story was about love, faith and confidence. A small coastal village in North Scotland, in 1970s.The village neighborhood didnt like foreigners, especially when those people worshiped different religions. The public of this village were very pious. In un-developed regions, women arent allowed to participate in the funeral ceremonies.The film was the first film of a trilogy, the names of which Golden Heart series. The movie was recorded by a hand-held camera, that brings audiences into the place. This technique made the fiction more realistic.The main character was Bess who had some mental problems and a childish manner. She had to be taken care of by her family members. She was talking with herself with a God Voice and tried to find a way to endure her pain. In the early chapters, we saw, Bess and Jan got married, had an incredible honeymoon and sexual experience. When Jan started to work, she missed him very much and begged God for the return her husband immediately. Everything changed with an accident. When Jan was in the oil-rig, he injured his neck and completely paralyzed. When Bess learned the accident, first she was very happy but then she started to blame herself. Their sex relations remained to fall down that situation. Jan asked her to take a lover and tell him the details. Because Jan knew Besss church wouldnt permit divorce. What do we think about Jans suggestion? Did he really want to get rid of her, for her sake? Or did he just think about himself? I think the story didnt answer this question. We should think about a man who was completely paralyzed and became selfish. Dodo, who was Besss sister-in-law, said sickness is a mighty power They quarreled about Besss situation. Jan believed Bess has more strength than them. Because of the whole painful process, Jan attempted to kill himself. When he failed, he asked Dodo for help for his own suicide. Dodo denied his request, she thought the second death would be very damaging for Bess. Bess had recently lost her brother.On the other side, Bess started to commit adultery. She believed in God and convinced herself if she did some sacrifices, Jan would be able to recovered. When she mentioned her bus experience, Jans reaction was unclearly. Was he relieved or annoyed? I think the most impressive chapter was the sixth one called Faith. In that chapter she started to go cheap bars and chose the ugliest guys. She punished herself that way. Meanwhile her reputation had become very damaged in the small village. Only Jans doctor and Dodo realized her tough condition. Bess had attempted to seduce the doctor too. Maybe he also liked her too, but didnt want to use her case. Everyone around her started to become aware of her sinful behavior. They even didnt tolerate her attitude. Her church, her neighbors, even her mother, everyone around her rejected her. In those kinds of small villages, people can be very cruel about morality. Which is the biggest sin? Who are the biggest sinners in this condition? Social rules are pressure in a small society. Actually, in this story everybody suffered a lot but they pretended to remain innocent while they pushed her down the cliff. I think miracles arent always fair. They can cause some kind of miserable consequences. At the end of the movie the unexpected miracle happened; the man recovered but he also lost his wife. The villagers wanted to punish her body too. They refused to bury her appropriately. Jan stole the body and gave her a real funeral. She buried at sea with the sound of bells.Here we have a story which argues what is right or wrong in love. If we were Bess, how many of us could be strong in love? ? To love a man and never hesitate to do some kind of tough sacrifices
