The Magdalene Sisters (2002)

The Magdalene Sisters is a 2002 film written and directed by Peter Mullan, about three teenage girls who were sent to Magdalene Asylums, (also known as 'Magdalene Laundries'), homes for women who were labeled as "fallen" by their families or society. The homes were maintained by individual religious orders in the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland.

Peter Mullan has remarked that the film was initially made because victims of Magdalene Asylums had received no closure in the form of recognition, compensation, or apology, and many remained lifelong devout Catholics. Former Magdalene inmate Mary-Jo McDonagh told Mullan that the reality of the Magdalene Asylums was much worse than depicted in the film.

Though set in Ireland, it was shot entirely on location in Dumfries and Galloway, South-West Scotland.

Synopsis

Set in Ireland, beginning in 1964, so-called 'fallen' women were considered sinners who needed to be redeemed. The film follows the stories of four young women - Margaret (raped by her cousin), Bernadette (too beautiful and coquettish), Rose (an unmarried mother) and Crispina (an intellectually disabled unmarried mother) - who are all forced by their families or caretakers into the Magdalene Asylum.

Actors