At one time, if you were looking for lush, literate dramas, you had to look no further than the films of Ishmail Merchant and James Ivory. The filmmaking duo produced dozens of movies together, spanning decades, with Merchant-Ivory becoming synonymous with a particular style of moviemaking. And their finest hour may have been “Howards End” (and “A Room With A View” is right behind) and it has been given a fresh coat of paint and is headed to back to theaters, where a new generation can get acquainted with their aesthetic (or an older generation can revisit a familiar fave).
Starring Anthony Hopkins, Vanessa Redgrave, Helena Bonham Carter, and Emma Thompson, and based on the novel by E.M. Forster, the story follows two couples amid the changing times of Edwardian England. Here’s the official synopsis:
One of Merchant Ivory’s undisputed masterpieces, this adaptation of E.M. Forster’s classic 1910 novel is a saga of class relations and changing times in Edwardian England. Margaret Schlegel (Emma Thompson) and her sister Helen (Helena Bonham Carter) become involved with two couples: a wealthy, conservative industrialist (Anthony Hopkins) and his wife (Vanessa Redgrave), and a working-class man (Sam West) and his mistress (Niccola Duffet). The interwoven fates and misfortunes of these three families and the diverging trajectories of the two sisters’ lives are connected to the ownership of Howards End, a beloved country home. A compelling, brilliantly acted study of one woman’s struggle to maintain her ideals and integrity in the face of Edwardian society’s moribund conformist values.
Nominated for 9 Oscars, and winning 3 (includes Best Actress and Best Adapted Screenplay) this is one you won’t want to miss. The newly restored “Howards End” is back on the big screen starting on August 26th.