Midwinter Break (M) – 90 minutes

A crisis of faith. That is the essence of the slow-moving drama that is Midwinter Break.

The film is set up at the start with reference to a traumatic incident that happened in the first year of marriage between Irish couple Stella and Gerry.

It saw them leave their beloved home for Scotland, where Stella (then played by Lesley Manville) was a teacher and Gerry (Ciaran Hinds) an architect.

Both have since retired.

It is freezing cold on Christmas Eve when Stella attends church and Gerry stays home to read a book.

On Christmas Day, Stella surprises Gerry with tickets for a trip to Amsterdam.

The holiday seems to begin well enough, but there is an unease about Stella.

All that comes to a head after the couple visits a church in the Dutch capital.

It was a mainstay of a secluded residential community for single Catholic women dating back to the Middle Ages.

Stella makes it clear that she wants to lead a more pious life and that she has let herself down.

Her feelings are informed by the incident to which I referred earlier (in their first year of marriage).

Stella is also terribly unhappy that Gerry hits the bottle at every opportunity.

Suddenly, after all these years, it appears that their marriage is in freefall and may not survive.

Based on an acclaimed 2017 novel by Bernard MacLaverty and co-written by him and Nick Payne, Midwinter Break marks the feature debut for Polly Findlay.

Even though the film is only 90 minutes long, you need to wade through more than half of it before you start to feel the reward for doing so.

In other words, it is ponderous to begin with and still ponderous 45 minutes in.

Truth is, a lot is told in the silences between the couple, but still the build-up is stretched.

No criticism of the performances though.

As Stella, Lesley Manville displays the patience of Job (pun fully intended), before she can no longer hold in her true feelings.

For his part, as Gerry, Ciaran Hinds regards the world in black and white terms, without giving over to spirituality.

There is no question that Gerry loves Stella, but he finds it difficult to meet her on her terms.

Notwithstanding my reservations, ultimately, I found the reward I desperately hoped I would.

There is depth to Midwinter Break. It is profound, but will only appeal to a select audience.

Rated M, it scores a 6½ to 7 out of 10.