A Room With A View (Special Edition) [1985]

Average customer rating:

Hurray! A Digitally Remastered DVD Version At Last!

Is this film really over 20 years old? Once banned for nudity, it's an example of how literary adaptations should be done

A Room With A View (Special Edition) [1985]
Starring: Maggie Smith , Helena Bonham Carter , Rupert Graves , Daniel Day Lewis , and Judi Dench
Director: James Ivory
Manufacturer: Channel 4 DVD
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

All Drama | Drama | Categories | DVD | Video
Period | Drama | Categories | DVD | Video
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DVD | Format (binding_browse-bin) | Refinements | DVD | Video
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Howards End [1992]

ASIN: B000TQLIOC
Release Date: 2007-10-29

Amazon.co.uk Review

The prestigious film-making trio of producer Ismail Merchant, director James Ivory and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala had made other critically acclaimed films before A Room with a View was released in 1985, but it was this popular film that made them art-house superstars. Splendidly adapted from the novel by E.M. Forster, it's a comedy of the heart, a passionate romance and a study of repression within the class system of manners and mores. It's that system of rigid behaviour that prevents young Lucy Honeychurch (Helena Bonham Carter) from accepting the loving advances of a free-spirited suitor (Julian Sands), who fears that she will follow through with her engagement to a priggish intellectual (Daniel Day-Lewis) whose capacity for passion is virtually non-existent. During and after a trip to Italy with her protective companion (Maggie Smith), Lucy gradually gets in touch with her true emotions. The fun of watching A Room with a View comes from seeing how Lucy's thoughts and feelings finally arrive at the same romantic conclusion. Through an abundance of humour both subtle and overt, the film rose to an unexpected level of popular appeal. The Merchant-Ivory team received eight Academy Award nominations for their efforts, and won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, Art Direction and Costume Design. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Hurray! A Digitally Remastered DVD Version At Last!.......2007-11-17

Having played my VHS tape of this wonderful film until my VHS player broke, and having followed other customers' advice about the previous, poor DVD editions, I am so glad that I am now able to watch a flawless version of this classic - the picture and sound quality is as crystal clear as is possible for a film produced 22 years ago, making visible the precious details of this meticulous production: the lacey costumes and beautiful sets, the authentic interiors and coiffures, and even minute facial expressions that I had missed so far.
Among the extras are interviews with Simon Callow and Daniel Day-Lewis. The most interesting extra for me was a 1970 BBC tribute to E. M. Forster, featuring footage, photographs and quotations of himself and interviews with some of his friends, critics and contemporaries, including Frank Kermode, Christopher Ishwerwood and George Steiner.
Priceless!

Is this film really over 20 years old? Once banned for nudity, it's an example of how literary adaptations should be done.......2007-11-04

The happiest of all E M's novels, the story of Lucy and George's cross class love affair is beautifully captured by Merchant Ivory in this film. A fantastic cast - with outstanding turns by the likes of Judy Dench (before we'd decided she was a British thespian 'Grand Dame'), Simon Callow, Daniel Day Lewis (Cecil in prissy perfection), Denholm Elliot (scene stealing beautifully)and Maggie Smith - is led by the inspired casting of ingenue Bonham Carter, as she was at the time, and Julian Sands as Lucy and George. Added to the wonderful cast is a beautiful score and oscar winning art direction to create that sumptuous view. The kiss in the poppy field is one of cinemas most beautiful and romantic moments and a fantastic example of how music and cinematography can be combined to create real artistic beauty.

Is this film really over 20 years old? Once banned for nudity (on UK television, I remember it showing in C4's groundbreaking 'banned' movie season), it's an example of how literary adaptations should and can be done. This is a personal favourite, however a warning - those who are not fans of Miz Bonham Carter, of Forsters novel or of Merchant Ivory would be better off steering clear, you won't enjoy this film.

Customer Reviews:

Did you Ever Get Bitten by a Dead Bee?.......2007-09-18

Everything is a classic these days even before anyone outside the studio has seen it, therefore the language has become debased and cheapened. These films on the other hand come from an era when film stars were actually something special and films valued the art of story telling. Sure there were strong commercial presures.

To Have and Have Not is a reworking ot the successful Casablanca theme. The ignition of the Bogart/Bacal chemistry helped that film ride above the obvious formula at work. This goes to show that great movies can be made under the mort crass attempts to cash in on a previous success.

Out of these films I guess that Dark Passage is the least well liked but I always loved the way that they avoided the complication of trying to convince us with two actors playing on character, before and after plastic surgery by only showing us the action from his point of view until the bandages came off and he was revealed as looking just like Humphrey Bogart!

How did he become a rugged sex symbol with a anme like Humphrey? I once asked a colleague this question, she was just short of retirement and very strong and serious woman. She immediately transformed into a blushing girl and said, "Yes but he really had it!". I gained an interseting insight into both my colleague and Bogart that day and they have never seemed that same since.

These are all 5 star films. I would have bought this for the recurring line in To Have & Have Not alone: "Did you ever get bitten by a dead bee?"

Customer Reviews:

The ORIGINAL story of O is the best!.......2007-04-28

This box contains two film; the original The story of O from 1975 - and the remake from 2005. Skip the remake, at least if you have the opportunity to see the original! (The remake is not even half as good as the original, with bad acting and baseball-boobs...)

The story of O is an S&M-based film. It's rough with great sex-scenes, without being too bad and hard. Acting is great, and you are drawn into the plot of the film. If you like the tought of S&M, this is truly a turn on. As 9 1/2 weeks is, this is one of my top three movies. See it!!!

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