Howards End (1992)

A businessman thwarts his wife's bequest of an estate to another woman.

Director:

James Ivory

Writers:

E.M. Forster (novel), Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (screenplay)

Stars:

Vanessa Redgrave, Helena Bonham Carter, Emma Thompson

Won 3 Oscars. Another 28 wins & 30 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Vanessa Redgrave	...	Ruth Wilcox
Helena Bonham Carter	...	Helen Schlegel
Joseph Bennett	...	Paul Wilcox
Emma Thompson	...	Margaret Schlegel
Prunella Scales	...	Aunt Juley
Adrian Ross Magenty	...	Tibby Schlegel
Jo Kendall	...	Annie
Anthony Hopkins	...	Henry J. Wilcox
James Wilby	...	Charles Wilcox
Jemma Redgrave	...	Evie Wilcox
Ian Latimer	...	Stationmaster
Samuel West	...	Leonard Bast
Mary Nash	...	Pianist
Siegbert Prawer	...	Man Asking a Question
Susie Lindeman	...	Dolly Wilcox

Storyline

Encounter of three social classes of the England at the beginning of the century : the victorian capitalists (the Wilcoxes) considering themselves as aristocrats, whose only god is money ; the enlightened bourgeois (the Schlegels), humanistic and philanthropist ; and the workers (the Basts), fighting to survive. The Schlegel sisters' humanism will be torn apart as they try both to softly knock down the Wilcox's prejudices and to help the Basts.

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Plot Keywords:

england | friendship | working class | middle class | prejudice | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild language, violence and sensuality

Details

Country:

UK Japan

Language:

English German

Release Date:

13 March 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

Casa Howard

Filming Locations:

Admiralty Arch, The Mall, St. James's, London, England, UK

Box Office

Gross:

$25,967,000 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Merchant Ivory Productions, Sumitomo Corporation, Imagica

Technical Specs

Runtime:

140 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Ismail Merchant had to pay $250,000 for the rights to the E.M. Forster novel to the trustees of Forster's estate, King's College in Cambridge. Merchant considered this an exorbitant sum but he had to match a Hollywood offer that the college was also considering at the time.

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Goofs

When Miss Margaret Schlegel (Emma Thompson) comes down the stairs and first meets Mr. Bast (when he attempts to retrieve his umbrella), Margarete calls her sister "Helena" and not "Helen". Helena is the real name of the actress portraying the sister (Helena Bonham Carter), and "Helen" is her characters name.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Margaret Schlegel: [reading letter] Dearest Meg, I'm having a glorious time. I like them all. They are the very happiest, jolliest family that you can imagine. The fun of it is that they think me a noodle, and say so - at least, Mr. Wilcox does. Oh Meg, should we ever learn to talk less.
[laughing]

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Connections

Featured in Siskel & Ebert: The Fugitive/The Meteor Man/Manhattan Murder Mystery/The Secret Garden/The Wedding Banquet (1993)

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Soundtracks

"Mock Morris"
Music by Percy Grainger
Courtesy of Schott & Co., Ltd.
Performed by Martin Jones

User Reviews

The Best Film Ever Made

Howard's End is not an easy movie to sit through if you do not typically watch period films. The language and euphemisms are very old fashioned (1910). But if you really sit back and watch the story unfold you will become engrossed. The crafting of the story by Merchant Ivory is impeccable. They tell the story so visually that you may not notice how physically alike Margaret Schlegel is to Ruth Wilcox in carriage and deportment, but the light-bulb goes off when the housekeeper of Howard's End mistakes Margaret for Ruth. The story itself is so quiet and brilliant that you don't realize something so very profound has happened until the credits roll. Every performance is amazing, but Emma Thompson (she won the Best Actress Oscar) and Vanessa Redgrave stand out. Their scenes together are so full of nuances that it's hard to take it all in during a first viewing.