User reviews

Here is another example of what the British are best at in film-making. Based on E.M. Forster's novel `Return to Howards End' this film is more or less a set piece in the strictest period-piece tradition, and thus in style is somewhat akin to that great TV series `Return to Brideshead' and even Robert Altman came up trumps with his splendid `Gosford Park' which most definitely takes its well-earned place alongside such classical pieces of this genre.

Likewise, `Howards End' relies heavily on British actors who have worked their way up through live theatre: it is here that you get the best interpretations, the best performances, admirably shown in so many films made on both sides of the Atlantic. If Vanessa Redgrave has long since been a legend among British actresses, Emma Thompson is no lesser performer, and as to the pedigree of Helena Bonham-Carter there can be no arguing. Anthony Hopkins is at least up to the mark in his always sober readings in these kinds of films.

The Bonham-Carter family were well known in the fashionable circles of 1930's London high-society life, for their extravagant soirées and philanthropic sponsoring of young artists, especially musicians, similarly to the Sitwell family from their Chelsea home. Thus it is hardly surprising that Helena Bonham-Carter finds these kinds of rôles admirably suited to her - A Room with a View, anything Shakespearean, among other select `comedies'. Prunella Scales is a grand old lady of theatre, cinema and television, and I can remember her offerings back in the late fifties-early sixties especially on radio programmes.

Beautifully filmed in mostly Oxfordshire and in several places in London, the film also has a few scenes on the coast, possibly Dorsetshire or more probably the south coast of Devon, surprisingly not included in IMDb's very detailed listing of locations. Richard Robbins' music seemed to be heavily influenced by Philip Glass at times, which seemed a misfit, though it was nice to hear a few snatches by Percy Grainger, as well as a version for four hands on the piano of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, possibly one of those tremendous transcriptions which Franz Liszt carried out.

The dialogues are mostly exquisitely delivered, with that peculiarly British panache and timing, though slightly spoiled in this recent re-viewing as there were some untimely cuts on the copy in question. However, the story holds its line and is faithful to E.M. Forster's original concept. He has long been one of the greatest of British novelists, with such works as `A Passage to India', `Where Angels Fear to Tread' and `A Room with a View' to his credit, for serious readers of real literature.

This film version maintains that seriousness for people interested in real play-acting.

Being a man who appreciates beauty and great visual movies, I have checked out all the Merchant-Ivory films. I found this to be their prettiest, just stunning in its beauty.

Story-wise, I preferred "The Remains Of The Day," but this was okay. It just didn't have the appealing characters "Remains" had and it was a little too soap opera for my tastes but the visuals made up for that, ...and the story, to be fair, was solid and involving.

It also had Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson, and those two make a great pair. I would never get tired of watching either of these great actors, especially when they are together.

If you like period pieces - this is 1910 Edwardian England - along with fabulous sets and scenery, a solid cast, and an involving story, you'll like this. If you are a fan of melodramas then you'll really, really like this!

England, early-1900s. Margaret Schlegel befriends Ruth Wilcox, the sickly wife of Henry Wilcox, a man of significant wealth. On her deathbed Ruth bequests her house, Howards End, to Margaret but this is deemed non-binding by her family and Margaret doesn't hear of the inheritance. Meanwhile, Margaret's sister Helen has taken a philanthropic interest in Leonard Bast, a poor, working class man. When Henry Wilcox and Margaret get engaged, Helen sees her chance to help out Leonard.

Okay, but a bit disappointing. I enjoyed The Remains of the Day (1993) and A Room with a View (1985), the other two prominent Ismail Merchant-James Ivory productions. I was expecting something akin to The Remains of the Day, especially as both movies starred Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson.

Unfortunately, Howards End doesn't quite have the same engagement levels as The Remains of the Day, nor the emotional impact. The Remains... was a great character drama with a powerful, poignant ending. Howards End is more about class divides and idealism than character depth.

Engagement is limited, as there are no characters to really pique your interest. Margaret / Emma Thompson is the central character but her story is quite dull. The characters we should be engaged in - Helen and Leonard - just aren't likeable enough.

Ultimately, however, it's a decent story with a poetic ending. The scenery and cinematography are amazing (as you would expect from Merchant-Ivory) and there are some top-notch performances. So is still watchable. Still, doesn't come close to The Remains of the Day in terms of quality and sheer engagement.

If it's raining, if it's late, if I'm tired of working, if I'm restless or if I'm in a quandary of sorts, "Howard's End". I put the film on and Emma Thompson - presumably with the help of her accomplices, Ivory, Jhavhala, Hopkins etc - takes me away from whatever mood I'm trying to escape and leads me through her own, brilliantly drawn, gently torturous path. I don't recall when was the last time an actress has had this kind of power over my own psyche. The film is constructed with an Ivory attention to detail worthy of a vintage Visconti. The screenplay has no lapses of any kind and never falls into the usual traps. Loyal to its source material and yet, cinematic in the most revolutionary traditional sense of the word. The Britishness of Anthony Hopkins character is turned upside down giving us a glimpse into a character that's a mass of contradictions. But it is Emma Thompson's film from beginning to end. What a glorious achievement.

The literary period piece is a difficult genre to master, requiring a difficult balancing between restraint and flowing emotion. Few films effectively achieve this as beautifully as Merchant-Ivory's astounding HOWARDS END, making it probably the best period film of the 1990's. The film juxtapositions the intellectual, emotionally unhindered Schlegel sisters against the restrained, imperious Wilcox family, and, for good measure, mixes in the differing attitudes toward class emerging early in the century. What could quite easily have been a dry study in the cultural dynamics of pre-WWI England becomes an enveloping tale, thanks in no small part to the performances by Hopkins, Emma Thompson, and Vanessa Redgrave, whose Ruth Wilcox remains enigmatic after every viewing. The emotions ringing through by film's end - not to mention its astoundingly pointed social criticism - give the film its power, a power missing even from Forster's rambling, distant novel. And this story is nestled amongst some of the most beautiful art direction, music, and cinematography to ever grace the screen. The haunting journey to HOWARDS END is one few other recent films can rival.

This is one of my all-time favorite movies. From the opening credits, superimposed over Vanessa Redgrave's skirt sweeping through the wet grass and flowers around Mrs. Wilcox's beloved Howards End, through to the final image of rural bliss, the cinematography is perfection. The costuming is amazing, the screenplay is adept, and the acting is stellar, to say the least. To have Emma Thompson, Helena Bonham Carter, Vanessa Redgrave, and Anthony Hopkins in one movie together is to see a true synthesis of talent, not to mention James Wilby and Samuel West. The scene where Leonard Bast goes walking into the field of blue flowers is breathtaking.

I recommend this film to anyone who loves Forster and who loves painterly cinematography. Also it is full of the finest performances by all of the actors involved.

Masterful performances make this splendid film adaptation of EM Forster's novel of the clashing of the classes a must-see. Anthony Hopkins, Helena Bonham Carter, Vanessa Redgrave, Samuel West, and Emma Thompson fill the screen with passion and vigor. One of the few good movies that does justice to the great book from which it was taken. Lushly filmed and directed with, though sometimes a heavy touch, great vitality by James Ivory. The setting is beautiful, the period feel is very accurate, and the story has subtle beauty. Watch for Ivory bringing out some interesting psychology between characters, especially of different classes. He captures attitudes of the time to near perfection. A cinematic treat.

Sister Helen Schlegel (Helena Bonham Carter) and Margaret Schlegel (Emma Thompson) are enlightened bourgeoisie. The Wilcoxes are rich and money-obsessed. Helen befriends matriarch Ruth Wilcox (Vanessa Redgrave). On her death bed, Ruth leaves her ancestral home Howards End to Helen who is about to lose the lease to her family home. The note has no date and no signature. Henry Wilcox (Anthony Hopkins) and his children decide to burn the note and ignore Ruth's wishes. The Schlegel sisters take an interest in the poor dreamer clerk Leonard Bast. Later, Henry spends time with Helen and they get married.

This is not my type of movies. It's long and slow and meandering. However, there is no denying that there is real craftsmanship here. The acting is superb. The movie looks beautiful. It's showing something about the classes in the era. However, I don't find the characters that compelling. The Schlegels talk too much. The Wilcoxes are too cold. Bast is too bitter. I can't really connect to any of these characters but the movie is still a masterpiece of filmmaking.

I'm sure that even in 1910 when Kaiser Wilhelm still had a few fans who remembered he was the grandson of Queen Victoria and not ruler of the soon to be hated foe of World War I, E.M. Forster must have come in for a few critic's slings in having some of his protagonists of Howards End have a German surname. Even that early time there were many who saw Germany as a potential foe.

These two Schlegel sisters played by Emma Thompson and Helena Bonham Carter befriend the Wilcoxes, a family of newly rich plutocrats headed by Anthony Hopkins who seem to be a version of Lillian Hellman's the Hubbards lite. Their mother is the class of the family and she's played by Vanessa Redgrave who is in poor health.

While Bonham-Carter is rejected by Hopkins's son James Wilby as a suitable wife for marriage, Vanessa befriends Thompson finding her to be a kindred intellectual spirit in a house full of moneygrubbers. In fact before she dies she writes an unsigned note asking that a cottage that's in her family's name called Howards End be given to the Schlegel sisters. When Hopkins and the rest of the family find the note after she's dead it gets torn up and burned. Unsigned it has no probative value in any event.

But as fate would have it Thompson and Hopkins get into a relationship and they soon marry and she tries to polish some of the rough edges off him. Especially in regard to snobbery. Hopkins is the kind of man who wants no reminders of where he came from. Particularly with another of the Schlegel sisters friends, a young clerk named Leonard Bast played by Samuel West trying to make his way in the world as the Wilcoxes have.

Emma Thompson won the Academy Award for Best Actress for Howards End that year and the film also won Oscars for Art&Set Direction and for adapted screenplay. Though Thompson won the Oscar, my absolute favorite in this film is Susie Lindeman as Mrs. Dolly Bast. She's so incredibly common and obviously holding him back, you can't blame West for eventually getting involved with Bonham-Carter which leads to tragedy.

The team of Ismail Merchant producer and James Ivory director succeed again at bringing the look and manners of Edwardian England as seen by E.M. Forster to life. Who says they don't make literate films any more, whoever says that have them see Howards End.

Merchant-Ivory film-adaptation of E. M. Forster's novel involves two turn-of-the-century English families crossing paths throughout many years. Emma Thompson and Helena Bonham Carter are superb as excitable sisters who somehow allow an imposing, sinister widower (Anthony Hopkins) to come between them. Costume drama is long but not too lofty, and director James Ivory provides some unexpected zest in his storytelling. Thompson won a well-deserved Oscar for Best Actress; Ruth Prawer Jhabvala also won for her screenplay. Flawed film may not catch on with every audience, though it has very strong moments, impeccable performances, and a lovely production (the art direction capping the film's third Oscar). Worth-seeing. **1/2 from ****

This film is a testimony to the creative novelist E.M. Forster! This early 90's full-length version of the novel is faithful to his 1921 masterpiece and beautifully realized by a team of film makers who know the "right moves." What a great trip back to early 20th Century Britain. The film moves briskly but in some ways we're experiencing some time gaps in a slow, slow manner; the outdoor scenes are great and almost multi-sensory. This highly atmospheric film also includes a great ensemble cast headed by Emma Thompson. The film never underestimates the intelligence of the audience and forces us to confront even our own class discriminations! Well worth a VHS or DVD rental; sorry I can't give any comments on DVD extras as I borrowed this free from our local library. Keep a copy of the book handy and notice the masterful interweaving done by Ruth Prawar Jandhlava. Life when fully realized is about much more than consumerist illusions and brief "ownership" by a selfish few. The novel's Motto is "Only connect" and the hard-thinking viewer of this great film will be enabled to do that as well !!!

"Howards End" is certainly one of the best films of the last decade. I have seen this film several times over the past 7 years and each time I find myself in complete awe. I love how its intricate story gradually unfolds layer by layer, involving us more and more with the characters. "Howards End" also boasts breath-taking cinematography by Tony Pierce-Roberts and a rousing and rueful musical score by Richard Robbins.

The ensemble cast is perhaps the best reason to see this film. Emma Thompson won the Best Actress Oscar for her performance, and deservedly so! This is her best performance and her best film, in my opinion. I loved watching the character development in her portrayal of Margaret Schlegel, as she transforms from an open-minded intellectual to a class-conscious social climber. What's remarkable is that we still feel for her greatly as she is going through this transition. She still remains a sympathetic character up until the very end when she slowly comes back to her senses.

Anthony Hopkins also gives one of his best performances as the cold and hypocritical Henry Wilcox. So many scenes shed different lights onto his character. The scene where he proposes to Margaret stands out in particular. There is plenty of erotic tension, but at the same time it almost feels like he is making some sort of impersonal business venture with her.

Vanessa Redgrave is a presence to behold as the fragile Ruth Wilcox. Her performance may be brief, but it leaves an indelible mark, particularly in later scenes when Margaret visits Howards End. Helena Bonham Carter should have gotten an Oscar nomination for her performance. She really has great depth and passion that is well-suited to her character. The rest of the supporting cast is superb. Even the minor characters like Nicola Duffet's Jackie Bast and Jemma Redgrave's stony-faced Evie Wilcox are noteworthy.

"Howards End" is one of the richest, most nuanced films I have seen. It is beautifully shot, well-acted, and exquisitely directed. It deserves to be considered a classic.

Having already seen A Room with a View and loving it, I saw Howards End having a feeling it would be good. After seeing it, I absolutely loved it, and think it marginally better than A Room with a View. Directed by James Ivory, produced by Ismail Merchant and written by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, it is a remarkably faithful adaptation of the novel, and on top of this is also an elegant, nuanced and fascinating film.

The period detail is perfect. What I loved about A Room with a View especially was its gorgeous Italian settings. Here it is just as gorgeous, while also having a certain elegance about it. You can never go wrong with beautiful scenery, wondrous costumes and elegant-looking locations, Howards End had all three of those. The music is also a marvel, beautiful, haunting and hypnotic, somewhat reminiscent of a Phillip Glass score, while having a few snatches of Percy Grainger and Beethoven too.

The script is very faithful in style to the book and warmth and depth is given to the characters, and the direction is sensitive and nuanced very like how it was in A Room with a View. The plot is quite complex, even on first viewing I found it a little hard to keep up with everything. Then again, this is the sort of film you may need to see more than once. It is quite slow moving, and at over 140 minutes hard to sit through in one sitting, but the period detail, music, screenplay and acting made the film pleasurable, elegant and even moving.

Speaking of the acting, the whole cast give very strong performances, while not standing out from one another. Emma Thompson is endearingly-beautiful in Howards End, more beautiful than she looked in Much Ado About Nothing, and gives a moving and spirited portrayal of Margaret. Helena Bonham Carter delivers one of her best ever performances in this film, a performance filled with depth and passion that really wants to make you feel for her character. Vanessa Redgrave while her role is brief still leaves a lasting impression in a characterisation that is moving and wholly relevant, while as the cold Mr Wilcox Anthony Hopkins who a year later would give a brilliant performance in The Remains of the Day(another stylish and nuanced film) shows what a fine actor he is as he gives yet another fine performance. The more minor characters were also very well done, from a spirited Samuel West, whose character Leonard Bast exemplifies the low expectations of the clerking classes, to a suitably serious Jemma Redgrave as Evie Wilcox.

Overall, moving, elegant, nuanced and impeccably acted, Howards End is a must see. 9.5/10 Bethany Cox

Dir. James Ivory-Pro. Ismail Merchant' s excellent work Howards End , 1992 with Emma Thompson-Anthony Hopkins is adapted from novel of E.M.Foster.

The following year, 1993 , we see another gorgeous performance , the Remains of the Day with same people. This time adaptation is from Kazuo Ishiguro ' s novel. Writer was awarded Nobel Literature Price in 2017.

Recently , we heart that a new co-operation with Emma Thompson- Anthony Hopkins is on the way : King Lear, 2018. This time , director is Richard Eyre.

P.S. Two important adaptation by James Ivory : A Room with a view (E.M.Foster), 1985 and Golden Bowl (Henry James), 2000.

Two additional adaptation info. : A Passage to India(E.M.Foster) by David Lean , 1984 and Washington Square(Henry James) by Agnieszka Holland , 1997.

So subtle, yet so very clever. There are some films you watch again and again just because you like them, or something about them. Even if you don't think them among the best ever - they're one of your favorites. This is not that. There are others you really have to watch several times just to penetrate the layers of things hidden - multiple meaning and real subtext. Modern film goers aren't used to this. Many find even the idea of intelligent films that require your intelligence to watch them, a foreign concept. This is one of those.

Now mind you I'm not saying this is a hard film to watch, it is not. It's extremely easy to watch, and very enjoyable - if you like people (or at least the idea of liking people). If you don't like people, you probably won't like this or any period piece. This movie actually has something to say, which is easy to miss. Meaning if you stay on the surface of it, it's very easy to take for granted - looking at the lovely and missing the principles and truths on display. Attention is something you have to Pay, and some are simply not willing to do that. They feel the price of the ticket should have covered it.

If you love excellence then you'll love this film, because it it is filled with excellence. It's not fast paced like a thriller, but not a single moment of the film is wasted. All the transitions from scene to scene are seamless, and every scene is full. The language here is the language of relationships. With one of the stronger underlying themes being that of the Biblical law of reaping what you sow, and accountability for one's actions.

Pay special attention to where the film begins and the offense (morally) that occurs there, where the film ends - and who is given what would have been theirs (at least in part) had the right thing been done instead of the offense, and the way that it all comes about. Which is part of what causes you to not notice it. Believe me, it is so subtle pretty nearly everyone misses it. In an almost altruistic sense the story comes full circle by ending exactly where it began. Watch how the inanimate objects of an umbrella, a sword, and a house participate in the flow of events, and thereby the direction of lives. This is probably the most nuanced film you'll ever see, and it is a masterpiece . . .

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This should have been a mini-series, and it would have been great, because the casting is fantastic and the cinematography exquisite. Instead, it's a rushed movie, where characters behave oddly and do things out of the blue, one after the other, things keep happening all the time.

We don't understand these people, they have little depth, we don't see their evolution. Having read the book behind the movie, it's a pity that we don't get to this understanding, because these people suffer and learn and love and grow.

The novel is a declaration of principles, but the movie doesn't go beyond a gossip. Truly a pity. Still nice to watch, but a missed opportunity.

Very lavish and extremely impressive production is the definite highlight of this Merchant-Ivory film from the novel by E.M. Forster. The eye catching sets and immaculate costumes are perfect, giving one a real feel for the period.

The acting too, is good (especially Helena Bonham Carter as 'Helen' and Sam West as 'Leonard Baast'), but that is about the end of it. "Howard's End" fails to impress in any other way. Although adapted by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (from a marvelous novel), the film is not well-balanced, or evenly scripted. We never have time to absorb any of Forster's wonderful characters. Director James Ivory also fails to move the film in any direction quickly enough. Still, it's a good looking picture.

Saturday, May 30, 1992 - Hoyts Forest Hill Chase