"Bull" McCabe's family has farmed a field for generations, sacrificing much in the name of the land. When the widow who owns the field decides to sell it in a public auction, McCabe knows that he must own it. While no local dare bid against him, a wealthy American decides he requires the field to build a highway. "Bull" and his son decide they must try to convince the American to let go of his ambition and return home, but the consequences of their plot prove sinister.
Acting
Richard Harris is terrifyingly fragile—Oscar-nominated and robbed.
Cinematography
The field itself becomes a character: beautiful, hungry, haunted.
Direction
Jim Sheridan's rural Ireland drips with ancestral dread.
Director
Jim Sheridan
Richard Harris
'Bull' McCabe
John Hurt
Bird' O'Donnell
Sean Bean
Tadgh McCabe
Frances Tomelty
Widow
Brenda Fricker
Maggie McCabe
Ruth McCabe
Tinker Woman
Brendan Gleeson
Quarryman
Tom Berenger
Peter - The American
Sean McGinley
Father Chris Doran
Jer O'Leary
Tinker Girl's Father
Noel O'Donovan
Tomás
Joan Sheehy
2nd Tinker Woman
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Real sheep were used in the cliff scene; animal welfare concerns nearly halted production. The field itself was in County Wicklow, not Galway where it's set.
The play by John B. Keane was banned in Ireland for its unflattering portrayal of rural masculinity. Sheridan's adaptation softened Bull slightly—Harris found him more sympathetic than the stage monster.
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