| A Room with a View | |
|---|---|
 original movie poster |
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| Directed by | James Ivory |
| Produced by | Ismail Merchant |
| Written by | Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (based on the novel by E.M. Forster) |
| Starring | Maggie Smith Helena Bonham Carter Denholm Elliott Julian Sands Daniel Day Lewis Judi Dench |
| Music by | Richard Robbins (score) Giacomo Puccini (sung by Kiri Te Kanawa) |
| Cinematography | Tony Pierce-Roberts |
| Editing by | Humphrey Dixon |
| Distributed by | Curzon (UK) Cinecom (US) |
| Release date(s) | United Kingdom: December, 1985 (premiere) 11 April 1986 (wide) United States: 7 March 1986 (NYC) April, 1986 (wide) |
| Running time | 117 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $3,000,000 (estimated) |
A Room with a View is a 1985 Merchant Ivory Productions' feature film, with a screenplay by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. The film was directed by James Ivory and produced by Ismail Merchant. The film is a close adaptation of E. M. Forster's novel of the same name (but for its unequivocally happy ending), and even uses his chapter titles to divide the film into sections.
It stars Helena Bonham Carter as a young woman in the restrictive Edwardian culture of turn-of-the century England and her love for a free-spirited young man. Maggie Smith, Denholm Elliott, Julian Sands, Simon Callow, Judi Dench, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Rupert Graves round out the main cast.
Contents |
Miss Lucy Honeychurch is on holiday in Italy with her cousin and chaperone, Charlotte Bartlett. Both Lucy and Charlotte are conventionally English in contrast with the more free-thinking and free-spirited backdrop of Italy. It is at a small pensione in Italy that Lucy meets elderly Mr. Emerson and his handsome son, George. These men, although also English, represent the forward-thinking ideals of the turn-of-the-century, seeking to leave behind the repression and caution that was the norm in Victorian times. At first, the two Emerson men seem strange and unfamiliar to Lucy and Charlotte. However, as Lucy begins her journey to maturity, she finds herself drawn to the men, especially the handsome George.
In an unguarded moment, George embraces and passionately kisses Lucy as she approaches him to ask a question in a rural barley field. Charlotte sees the act and quickly stops it. George's unrestrained passion shocks Lucy, but also lights a secret desire and romance in her heart.
Upon returning to England, Lucy forgets the incident. She accepts a marriage proposal from an uptight, but respectable and wealthy man named Cecil Vyse, assuming that she will never see George again. However, she soon learns that both George and his father have moved to her small village and will be her neighbours. The appearance of George soon disrupts her plans and forces her to make a choice.
After a while, the Emerson men decide that they do not fit in with the locals. They make plans to move to a more open-minded place. Lucy has already broken her ties to Cecil, and wants to travel for a while. She yearns to separate herself from the antics of her brother, Freddy, as well as the sweet-yet-tiresome older neighbors (including Charlotte and Lucy's own mother). Just as she is about to leave Windy Corner to set out on an independent adventure, she elopes with George to Florence.
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by The Purple Rose of Cairo |
BAFTA Award for Best Film 1987 |
Succeeded by Jean de Florette |
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   | Merchant Ivory Production - Merchant Ivory Productions :: A Room With a View |
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