Claysaba Excellent, Without a doubt!!

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Hadrina The movie's neither hopeful in contrived ways, nor hopeless in different contrived ways. Somehow it manages to be wonderful

Tobias Burrows It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

John Hancock The reason why people are constantly comparing this to Jane Eyre is beyond me. I couldn't care less about how beautiful Italy is because I myself was born there, and the cast is something that I seldom rate compared to the writing. it's hard for me to label this a "romance" when there barely was any interaction and zero chemistry between the unlikable characters: Lucy is a one-dimensional, annoying and irresponsible girl, which obviously, since the target audience is supposed to be naive little girls, experiences a sudden epiphany that makes her realize her mistakes and just how dumb she has been throughout the whole movie (how can you dislike this masterpiece?), Cecil is a complete and utter plot device, whose sole function is to drive the story to an end, being a downright flat stereotype of a snobby English gentleman, George is... who's George again? Oh, right, the "nice guy" who is supposed to hook up with the protagonist somehow, in spite of being uninteresting and bland, I don't think the other characters even had a purpose to begin with, so I'm not going to make a list of them. The romantic side of the movie doesn't show up until the latter half, which is slightly too late for my standards. The ending is very predictable and quite disappointing. Calling this movie "romantic" would be like trying to squeeze orange juice out of a prune, side effects included. According to the reviews above me I can speculate that the users who enjoyed this fall into two different categories: first there are people who watched it into their childhood/adolescence, who probably have completely forgotten about this movie, nevertheless they're inclined to rate it highly regardless of the way their opinion changed in their current age, no critical thinking whatsoever. The latter category is unable to find the flaws in this movie because they're blinded by the beauty of the colors and the setting, often coming with an extreme fawning of the actors and their performance. It was hilarious to see the characters mentioning Italian literature and culture, however, my chuckles only lasted twice or thrice. I would have appreciated it more if the movie kept being on its funny side, rather than degenerating in a dull romance. But then again, the majority of the reviews above me hardly feature any statement that isn't made with the mental age of 12, and is the reason I'm prone to distrust IMDb, especially when it comes to movies whose rating is higher than 7.0.

mark.waltz You too might want to scream out, "Hush, hush sweet Charlotte!" after the tenth time cousin Maggie Smith sticks her foot in it. For the companion to the lovely Helena Bonham Carter to be so socially backwards while the rest of her family is so earthy adds great charm to Smith's Oscar Nominated performance. This is also an opportunity to see Dame Maggie working with her good friend, the future Dame Judi Dench, seen in the early sequences as a rather Bohemian writer.Carter and Smith are on vacation in Italy and the moment Maggie views the lack of a view from their window, she is up in arms. Cockney Denholm Elliott offers to switch his and his son Julian Sands room for theirs which has a view, and uppity Maggie declines, shocked that he would have the audacity to even speak to them, something she believes that the lower classes shouldn't do. But easy going Helena isn't so proud and graciously accepts, going as far as spending time with the educated Sands and growing fond of him in spite of the fact that she's already engaged to the stuffy Daniel Day Lewis.The romantic intrigue continues at Carter's summer home back in England where she must make some quick decisions in regards to stuffy Daniel. Elliott and Sands come for weekend where Carter's charming brother Rupert Graves is introduced, revealing a free spirit and almost Bohemian nature between the two siblings. This also creates a bond between Sands and Graves which borders on the homo-erotic, especially in a sudden nude scene that also includes the local minister Simon Callow.As the classes clash and Carter becomes torn between love and obligation, the film moves from drawing room comedy into social drama. The beauty of the dramatic parts is that it never looses the mood established in the first half. Everybody gets a chance to shine, but they are forced to step back every time Maggie Smith re-appears on the scene. Even when she has an argument with a cab driver over the cost, Smith tears the roof off.Elliott shows that just because someone is identified as lower class does mean that they lack in class. You can see how the gentleness transfered from father to son and how the desire to be something more than what he would have been a century earlier has inspired Sand's jovial character. Lewis headed to stardom quickly after this surprise hit, and Carter made a successful entrance into films with this and the same year's "Lady Jane", although this is a far cry from her more recent films under the direction of Tim Burton. Smith's character reminded me of a more comical version of Lady Rosamund, Smith's character's daughter on "Downton Abbey".

edwagreen You don't need much room to view this disappointing 1985 film. The problem is that with the exception of Maggie Smith, who gives new meaning to spinsterhood, the characters are unbelievable in this brooding Merchant-Ivory piece set in the Victorian era.Daniel Day-Lewis comes off as a fop or dandy; even though he is engaged to Helena Bonham Carter here. She finds true love in Italy and it follows her back home in England.The film often drags The scene with the naked men was funny but the result was highly predictable.The men in particular are really off the wall in this film.

avgjoedc I say its nearly perfect, but I really cant fault it for anything. The performances are uniformly exquisite, the visuals/scenery are magnificent, the script follows the classic novel - but keeps the humor, irony, and pathos open to a modern audience. It is the most accessible and most enjoyable of the Merchant & Ivory translations of classic works - and really elevates the magic of the original EM Forster novel. While the leads keep the story going, the smaller roles constantly keep you amused. The aged sisters, the carefree brother, the nervous mother, the vicar, the bold authoress, etc all provoke a smile. And the last 3 minutes are simply delightful.