The Road Dance is a 2022 film written by Richie Adams and John MacKay. The film is based on a book of the same name by MacKay. The film is set in the early years of World War I on the Isle of Lewis in the Outer Hebrides.

1904, Isle of Lewis, Young Kirsty and her father sit on a beach and they talk about going to America.

1916, 12 years later, Garenin village, it is apparent that Kirsty's father has died. Kirsty, her sister Annie, and her mother Mairi talk about going to a Cèilidh in the village. Kirsty then leaves to meet up with Murdo, her boyfriend, and they talk about their dreams of going to America. They are spotted on the cliff top by Skipper, an elderly recluse who lives near the village. Kirsty and her family look after Skipper, bringing him food and checking in on him occasionally.

Some time later, Murdo receives a letter calling him up for service in The Great War. When Murdo tells Kirsty about the conscription letter, they declare their love for each other and promise to marry once Murdo returns. The village decides to hold a road dance (outdoor cèilidh) for Murdo and his friends who have all been called up together.

Wearing a new dress, Kirsty and her family attend the cèilidh and dance into the night. Kirsty leaves the dance and walks along the cliffs. In the darkness, she is attacked by an unknown assailant, she falls and hits her head on a rock.

Murdo goes looking for Kirsty and finds her, unconscious, on the cliffs. When she comes round, she tells Murdo she fell and hit her head whilst walking. Murdo carries Kirsty to Dr Maclean's house who treats her head wound and suggests she stays the night so he can ensure she has no other injuries. Maclean asks Murdo to leave, telling him to return for her in the morning. Maclean asks Kirsty if he can check her, he doesn't say anything to Kirsty but he guesses that she might have been raped.
As a thank you to Dr Maclean for treating her daughter, Kirstys' mother invites him to supper. Maclean tells them about his move to London, the death of his wife and his subsequent move to the island village. Later, Murdo and his friends are get ready to leave for Army training in England. He tells Kirsty that he loves her and will find his way back when the war is over. Kirst gives him her crucifix necklace. The men leave the island.

Time passes, Kirsty realises she is pregnant. She receives a number of letters from Murdo, who writes about his experience in the war. Whilst reading one of his letters, Murdo is seen laying in the mud after an explosion. Kirsty binds her stomach with cloth, attempting to hide her progressing pregnancy. She eventually tells her sister Annie that she is pregnant and that she was attacked and raped the night of the cèilidh. Angus, who left with Murdo and their other friends to go to war, returns to the village missing an arm. He tells Kirsty that Murdo is dead and gives her Murdo's army tags and the necklace.

Kirsty eventually tells her mother that she is pregnant and that she now remembers being attacked and raped. Kirstys' waters break and she prematurely gives birth to a baby boy. Kirsty wants to keep the baby but her mother tells her she will be an outcast and called a whore. That night, while her mother and sister are asleep, Kirsty takes her baby and leaves, intending to take the sick baby to the doctor. Walking along the cliff path, Kirsty notices her baby has stopped crying, when she checks, the baby has died. She walks to the cliff edge and just as her mother arrives, Kirsty, with her baby, jumps into the sea. She let's go of the baby and is rescued by her mother.

The next day the baby's body is washed to shore and is found by Skipper who informs Police Constable McRae. McRae visits Dr Maclean and questions him about the night Kirsty was found injured and indicates he suspects Kirsty is the child's mother. They both visit Kirsty and after the Dr examines her, he tells McRae that Kisty has not given birth. McRae asks for a second opinion from another doctor.

Dr Connolly arrives, carries out an examination and tells McRae that not only has Kirsty not given birth, but she is also a virgin. Disgruntled, McRae leaves saying he knows that Kirsty is involved somehow. After some time passes, Kirsty visits Dr Maclean and confronts him, telling him that after he conducted the examination for McRae, she realised it was the Dr who raped her, she recognised the smell of a particular whisky. She tells him that "God may forgive you, but I never will". As she walks away she hears a gunshot.

Kirsty returns home to tell her mother and McRae soon arrives to say the Dr had shot himself. McRae tells the family that he knows Dr Connelly (who didn't know the Macleod family) had examined Annie, not Kirsty. Mairi tells him it was Dr Maclean that raped Kirsty. Peggy, their neighbour who has listened to the conversation, tells the McRae that he can choose to let the matter go, but Kirsty didn't choose to be raped. Unhappy, McRae leaves, deciding not to take the matter any further.

A year later, Kirsty decides to leave for America. Her family and friends say goodbye to her. Skipper returns the crucifix and tags, he had kept them safe for her.
Kirsty, having arrived in America, is now living with her uncle in an apartment. Answering a knock on the door, Kirsty sees Murdo. He explains he was a prisoner of war, held in Germany. After his release he returned to Garenin where Mairi told him what happened. Murdo tells Kirsty "I told you I would find my way back".

Jim Kreutzer, who runs Sheridan Road Productions in Chicago, had read the book The Road Dance by journalist and author John Mackay and was looking for a project outside of the US. Mackay had already written a script based on the book but Kreutzer thought it was too dark. Kreutzer brought Richie Adams on board to write the script and direct the film.^[1]

Filming began in October 2020, amid the Covid19 pandemic, and was filmed on location at Gearrannan Blackhouse Village (a restored village) near Carloway on the Isle of Lewis.^[2][3]

The film was premiered at the 2021 Edinburgh International Film Festival where it won the Audience Award for Best Film.^[4] The film was released on 20 May 2022.^[5]

The film received mixed to positive reviews. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 83% of 30 critics' reviews were positive with an average score of 6.80/10.^[6] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, gave the film a mixed score of 54, based on 7 reviews.^[7]

The Guardian review gave the film 3/5 stars, stating "Although a little too performatively Scottish at times, this is a competently made weepie that should please fans of the book."^[8] The Sydney Morning Herald gave the film 3.5/5 stars and praised the filming locations and the strong cast.^[9] The Irish Times gave the film 3/5 stars. They praised the acting and production but compared the story to an afternoon movie along the lines of a Catherine Cookson novel.^[10]

The Road Dance premiered at the Edinburgh International Film Festival (2021) where it won the Audience Award for Best film. The film won the jury prize for best feature at the Manchester International Film Festival. Internationally, the film won the audience choice award for best feature drama at the Sedona International Film Festival.^[11]