Which Reel is Reel? Maggie Brumar

Which Reel is Real?

Maggie Brumar

            Not everything can be absolutely accurate. Every time a story is told, something is bound to change. The Crucible was set in 1962 during the Salem Witch Trials and was originally a play and later made into a movie. Although the true reality did shine through, the movie altered aspects to adhere to Hollywood’s standards. Facts of the time were modified to conform to the needs of the stage, as well as the audiences.

        Countless adjustments exist within the movie The Crucible as well as the play. Arthur Miller, author of the play, even admitted it. In “A Note On The Historical Accuracy of This Play” he explains some of the changes he forged to better fit his play. Among these was the number of judges. Miller explained that there were several judges during the trials, but he symbolized them all with just the two; Hathorne and Danforth. This was changed in both the film and the drama. This alter made the play easier to follow, as less people on stage means less people to keep track of. Not only did the number of judges change, but the number of girls involved in the “crying out” also did. This is because the number of people on stage is strategic. If there were too many people, the scene would get overly chaotic and likewise confusing for the audience, thus by reducing the amount of girls on stage, the audience could follow the plot with less difficulty.

               The movie The Crucible was directed by Nicholas Hytner. Hytner formed adjustments to history much like Arthur Miller did. One change that both Hytner and Miller made was reducing judges involved in the trials. Unlike Miller, Hytner chose the number three. He valued the number three extremely significantly in his movie, whether it be three heads in a shot, three windows on a building, a stack of three books, or three horses in the background. Another change Hytner made to real life was dramatizing events. We all know that hollywood has a tendency to tweak information to make it appeal to people, after all, it's all about the ratings. In order for a movie to get good ratings, it has to capture the audience and make people yearn to watch it. This means the audience has to stay intrigued and involved. What better way to conquer this task than a romantic twist. Hytner also raised Abigail's age to seventeen from eleven. John Proctor's age was not specified in the film, however the sixty year old man was shown to be a young and handsome working man. This created a perfect opportunity for the secret love story. The role of love was also hyperbolized in the movie. The reason the girls hid the truth and played witch was because Abigail was in love. When in reality, fear of punishment had a more prominent role than crying devil in hopes of a love story.

               Movies and plays are not comprehensive to the truth. The movie The Crucible demonstrates this in various ways. Changes are made to the characters ages and relationships. The number of actors on stage was permutated for the use of symbolism. The Crucible signifies the importance of the separation between Hollywood and reality