Up at the Villa (2000)

A widow finds choosing a new husband might not be her choice at all, as the actions of her various prospects confine her freedom.

Director:

Philip Haas

Writers:

W. Somerset Maugham (book), Belinda Haas (screenplay)

Stars:

Kristin Scott Thomas, Sean Penn, Anne Bancroft

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kristin Scott Thomas	...	Mary Panton
Sean Penn	...	Rowley Flint
Anne Bancroft	...	Princess San Ferdinando
James Fox	...	Sir Edgar Swift
Jeremy Davies	...	Karl Richter
Derek Jacobi	...	Lucky Leadbetter
Massimo Ghini	...	Beppino Leopardi
Dudley Sutton	...	Harold Atkinson
Lorenza Indovina	...	Nina
Roger Hammond	...	Colin Mackenzie
Clive Merrison	...	Archibald Grey
Linda Spurrier	...	Hilda Grey
Ben Aris	...	Col. Trail
Anne Ridler	...	Lady Trail
Ann Bell	...	Beryl Bryson (as Anne Bell)

Storyline

Superficial people are revealed and drastically changed by circumstance or luck in this tale of death, seduction, blackmail, and theft amongst British and Americans in Florence, Italy in the turbulent days just before World War II.

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Plot Keywords:

police corruption | flower | tree | shooting oneself | railway station | 

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Taglines:

Danger is the ultimate attraction.

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements

Did You Know?

Trivia

In the late 1950s, Lana Turner was offered the lead role in a proposed adaptation of the novel. But after the killing of her lover, Johnny Stompanato, at the hands of her teenage daughter, Cheryl Crane, Turner's casting, and eventually the movie, did not come to fruition.

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Goofs

When Anne Bancroft's character is reclining in the chaise lounge, the level of her drink goes from nearly full to nearly empty and back to nearly full in different shots while she is drinking it.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Gladiator/Up at the Villa/Committed/I Dreamed of Africa/The Virgin Suicides (2000)

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Soundtracks

Schatz-Walzer
Composzed by Johann Strauss

User Reviews

Nicely done effort

If you like stories about the British upper class and their foibles abroad, you'll enjoy"Up At the Villa." (What a rotten title!) Edward Fox is the perfect gentleman (isn't he always?) Sean Penn is the perfect cad. (Isn't he always?) And Anne Bancroft notches up yet another role as the faded bitch. (Doesn't she do anything else these days?) It's a pretty straight and predictable love story/murder who done it, except we know all along that the victim "done it" to himself. It's in something the same genre as "Tea With Mussolini" with lovely shots of Florence and a faithful recreation of fascist Italy.

Details

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 May 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

Il suffit d'une nuit

Filming Locations:

Florence, Tuscany, Italy

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$339,819, 7 May 2000

Gross USA:

$2,933,161

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$3,740,113

Company Credits

Production Co:

October Films, Intermedia Films, Mirage Enterprises

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1