Skip to main content
Donate to the 95 years appeal
Horrific home truths
MARIA DUARTE recommends the disturbing narrative of a family struggling against the odds in the wilds of 19th-century Snowdonia

Gwen (15)
Directed by William McGregor

THE MORNING STAR’S new ambassador Maxine Peake stars in this dark and disturbing gothic folk tale set in 1855 Snowdonia during the industrial revolution.

Teenager Gwen (a revelatory Eleanor Worthington-Cox) is trying to keep her family and home together against all the odds. Her father has not returned from war and she is struggling with her mother’s mysterious illness while looking after her younger sister (Jodi Innes) and battling a ruthless mining company hell-bent on taking their farm and land.

Bleak and gritty, writer-director William McGregor’s debut feature is a slow-burning mystery-cum-horror which explores the plight of women in 19th-century north Wales.

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
fotw
Film of the week / 17 July 2025
17 July 2025

MARIA DUARTE recommends the ambitious portrait of an agricultural community confronted by the trauma of enclosure

Book Reviews / 10 February 2025
10 February 2025
ANDY HEDGECOCK recommends two collections of short stories that use a single location to connect the narratives, and explore the limits of our ability to understand the world
VIRTUOSO PERFORMANCES: Marianne Jean-Baptiste and Michele Au
Film of the week / 30 January 2025
30 January 2025
The Star's critic MARIA DUARTE is dazzled by an extraordinary performance in a classic Mike Leigh film
(L) Nightbitch; (R) Porcelain War
Cinema / 5 December 2024
5 December 2024
Horror for young mothers and Western presidents, a one-legged wrestler and weaponised art; the Star's critic MARIA DUARTE reviews Nightbitch, Rumours, Unstoppable and Porcelain War