The Age of Innocence
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Movie Reviews of The Age of Innocence
Movie Review: ON MY TOP FIVE LIST OF MY FAVORITE FILMS
Summary: 5 Stars
I did my senior research paper on the original Edith Wharton novel, and the film is so faithful to her original language and vision that I was nearly knocked backward by the brilliance of this ravishingly intoxicating film. All of the symbolism of the novel is here, including the colors and flowers associated with May and Ellen respectively. Whenever I read the novel, I always see Michelle Pfeiffer and Daniel Day Lewis as the ill-fated lovers in my mind, and I very much wish that Michelle Pfeiffer had been been honored with the Oscar for Best Actress for what is very much her finest performance to date. Besides Pfeiffer and Lewis, the rest of the cast is spell-bindingly brilliant, without a weak link in sight. All in all, this is the most faithful adaptation of a novel ever put on film, and the most visually breathtaking with what is one of the best scores ever composed for a film. The costumes in themselves are works of art, and the Academy Award for Best Costume Design was thoroughly deserved. I thoroughly believe that if it hadn't been released the same year as Schindler's List, it would have won Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Actress hands down. I just wish more people knew about this masterwork from one of the most brilliant directors still left in Hollywood. Wharton, had she been present, would have applauded the film version of her brilliant Pulitzer Prize-winning novel enthusiastically.Movie Review: The Age of Innocence - "I can't love you unless I give you up"......
Summary: 5 Stars
There are many reviews here and I believe in their own way they all are right about this film to some degree. My main recommendation is to be sure to watch it more than once. If you do, it will begin to open up new vistas for you about this movie and the period in which it takes place. Daniel Day-Lewis once again makes this film. You feel his intense pain once he unfortunately falls in love with the "wrong woman" (Pfeiffer) after being engaged to the "right woman" (Ryder). He is a true gentleman in every sense of the word and you mourn for him throughout this film. Due to circumstances beyond his control, he is thrown together with the wrong woman at the very time he has been pushing to move the date up for his marriage to the right woman. There is a palpable, underlying eroticism and sensuality that is very well developed by Day-Lewis and Pfeiffer even though they never really have an affair.
After I had watched this film one time, (primarily due to Day-Lewis)I had decided to give it away. I left it alone for about 2 weeks and then watched it again. Since then I have watched it several times and I enjoy it more and more with each viewing. My only real complaint; I hate the blond hair they gave Pfeiffer. It's just all wrong for her. Nevertheless, she is so beautiful. Take the time to watch this at least two times. If you do, I think you'll find it's a keeper.
Movie Review: Edith Wharton's The Age of Innocence
Summary: 5 Stars
This movie wrenched my heart so much so that it hurt to watch; yet I could not take my eyes from it. Daniel Day-Lewis was superb; I love his style. Mr. Day-Lewis was just as good, if not better, as John Malkovich was opposite Michelle Pfeiffer in Dangerous Liaisons. Newland Archer (Day-Lewis) was more honorable than the underhanded and treacherous Vicomte de Valmont (Malkovich), as this movie deals more with unattainable love than the filthy manipulative love of Dangerous Liaisons. The forbidden romance's outcome is prolonged from being revealed as long as possible to torture the viewer. Martin Scorsese has made a masterpiece here. His long shots coupled with the exquisite costumes and glorious scenes are breathtaking. This film is highly underrated and if you are one of the unfortunate many who has not yet seen this film, do so now.
Michael Gough is a pleasant surprise and it's interesting to note that only a year before he worked with Michelle Pfeiffer as Alfred in Batman Returns. Michelle Pfeiffer herself is as always gorgeous and makes you pity her character's loneliness; I really wanted things to work out for her. Winona Ryder is overshadowed by Pfeiffer's stellar performance but does have some memorable moments herself. This is the second movie I've seen Winona made up to look like an elderly woman, the first being Edward Scissorhands. A well deserved five out of five stars.
Movie Review: Splendid Adaptation of Wharton from Scorsese
Summary: 5 Stars
"The Age of Innocence" was Martin Scorsese's first effort at a period drama; in a sense, a cinematic prequel to his successful "Gangs of New York". It is often overlooked as one of his finest films, perhaps because the psychological tension so vividly depicted on screen isn't nearly as captivating as what he has accomplished in films such as "Taxi Driver", "Raging Bull", "Goodfellas", and of course, "Gangs of New York". But both he and his long-time collaborator, screenwriter Jay Cocks, have done a splendid job capturing the atmosphere of 1870s upper class New York City, ranging from the costumes to the fine - if somewhat muted - performances from the cast. Both Scorsese and Cocks have crafted a visual feast which is reminiscent of many Merchant-Ivory films.
Daniel Day Lewis is most impressive as Newland Archer, who conducts a secret romance with young May Welland, played by Winona Ryder, in a dignified performance that may leave some wondering whether the passion between May and Newland is absolutely real. Michelle Pfeiffer's performance of Countess Olenska, May's cousin, surprisingly also lacks some of the sexual sparks she had set off in her performance in "Dangerous Liaisons". Still, the cast performs credibly in this long, though faithful, adaptation of Edith Wharton's novel.
Movie Review: Mean Streets
Summary: 5 Stars
In THE AGE OF INNOCENCE, Martin Scorsese has abandoned hisoft-tread mileu, the mean streets of present-day New York, for a period and setting that some have speculated would be more appropriate subject matter for a Merchant-Ivory film.
But New York is New York and Mr. Scorsese seems as mesmerized by the New York of the 19th Century as he is by the New York of the 20th. Edith Wharton's dry, satiric prose is given an erotic bloom, bursting blossoms and vivid colors splashing across the
screen with an energetic immediacy that Mr. Scorsese usually reserves for graphic bloodletting. The struggle of Newland Archer, as played by Daniel Day-Lewis, between a boundless liberalism and the strict, repressive society around him is present in this fine actor's every gesture. To contrast his performance here with his wild, ferocious work in Scorsese's GANGS OF NEW YORK is to bear witness to an almost absurd level of versatility. Winona Ryder is somewhat miscast but conveys ample complexity. It is Michelle Pfeiffer's radiant performance that sets the picture ablaze, though. You want to drown in her eyes, even as the world is crushing her with every spin.