The Quiet Man is a classic movie about love and Ireland

Just now, mid-April, the grass is becoming green again in Indiana. It's so pleasant to see spring, with daffodils and paperwhites opening their cheerful faces. Green coming back reminds me of one of my all time favorite movies, The Quiet Man with John Wayne and Maureen O'Hara. Director John Ford won the Academy Award in 1952 for this epic romantic comedy set in rural Ireland. In 2013, the film received recognition from the National Film Archives at the US Library of Congress as being culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant.

In the story, Sean Thornton (played by John Wayne) returns from life in Pittsburgh to his boyhood home of Inisfree, Ireland. He falls in love with fiery redhead Mary Kate Danaher (Maureen O'Hara). Mary Kate's brother, Squire Will Danaher, does not approve of the courtship, however, and conflict ensues. The story explores Irish customs in a modern setting, and the cinematography in the Irish countryside is breathtaking and won awards. Irish language and traditions are featured and celebrated. The movie is charming and wonderfully acted by an impressive ensemble cast.

Without giving too much away, the couple marry, but after feeling tricked brother Will refuses to pay the dowry that was to accompany the bride. Groom Sean cares nothing about the money and possessions that were promised, but bride Mary Kate cares deeply about her heirloom treasures. She wants her own things about her in her new home in the quaint old cottage - things that included family linens, a spinet piano, an ancient baby cradle, etc. A custom that was so common in Ireland was becoming lost in the post-war days of much of the United States.

Other traditions are woven into the story seamlessly - the gathering and singing in pubs, horse racing, the sale of livestock at a town marketplace, the ways Protestant and Catholic Irish worked out living together as neighbors. Emotions, whether anger, mirth, spirit or love, are portrayed passionately.

The action in the film keeps it moving as well - John Wayne athletically riding his horse, the long walks through the fields, the prolonged choreographed fight scene. The countryside is a character as well - ancient chapel ruins, trout fishing streams, horse carts and trains. It's all a feast for the eyes, ears, and heart.

I wasn't alive in 1952 when this film was created. I can only imagine a United States and a Europe healing from the great wars a few years before. Maybe it's the Irish in me, and the love of the idea of a strong and spirited woman, that makes me rewatch this old classic every few years. I recommend it especially if you enjoy a great musical score, this one featuring some traditional Irish folk songs in addition to songs composed by Victor Young.