Maurice (1987)

The second of the three Merchant/Ivory films adapting E.M. Forster novels (between A Room with a View and Howard's End), Maurice deals with a theme few period pieces dare mention--a young man's struggle with his homosexuality. It's not just a gay coming-of-age story, however. The hero wrestles with British class society as much as his personal and sexual identity.

The film opens on a stormy, windswept beach, as an older man awkwardly instructs young, fatherless Maurice Hall (James Wilby) in the "sacred mysteries" of sex. The same turbulent, wordless struggle with passion lasts throughout this slowly evolving, beautifully filmed story. Novelist E.M. Forster's brainy, British melodrama hinges on choice and compulsion, as the pensive hero falls for two completely different men. First comes frail, suppressed Clive (Hugh Grant), who wants nothing more than classical Platonic harmony... and a straight lifestyle. (Grant's performance is so convincing, one wonders how he ever became a heterosexual sex symbol.) After Clive's wedding, Maurice turns to hypnosis to cure his unspeakable longings. Unfortunately, his "cure" is interrupted by Clive's lustful, brooding, barely literate gamekeeper Scudder (Rupert Graves), a worker more at home gutting rabbits than discussing the classics. Maurice's love for a "social inferior" forces him to confront his illicit desire and his ingrained class snobbery. --Grant Balfour Amazon.com

great movie

The movie follows the book. It is a great movie. I have looked at it
many times, so I could get the full meaning. It is a must see if you are
a writer. October 28, 2008

Great Valentine's Day Flick

Love Triumps in this story of two men in turn-of-the-century England. Despite their great differences - one is of noble birth, the other is from the lowly worker class - they find comfort and confidence in each other and a love that, in the end, wins out against the hurtles and hard choices a victorian-age society puts between them... A MUST BUY! July 5, 2008

Century Later the Feeling Is Still Strong

Over twenty years after it was made "Maurice" has changed into a classic but did not age at all. This coming-of-age and coming-to-terms story faithfully taken from E. M. Forster's novel was transferred into the screen with such adroitness that with the passage of time it rather increases its appeal.
We are transferred to the Edwardian England some years before the outbreak of the Great War. The main hero Maurice is an average student (it is funny to note that everybody including Maurice considers his studies a commendable pastime but generally a waste of time as he should go into business) who falls for a fellow student, an impoverished aristocrat Clive. Their romance is purely platonic which seems to suit Clive (who finally decides to change his minds and gets married which puts an end to their little fling) survives their Cambridge period but is clearly insufficient for Maurice. After failed attempts to cure himself of his illness (both medicine and hypnosis are used) he visits Clive in his estate and falls in love again - this time for a game-keeper. This love is consummated and provides an opening for a happy ending which neither Forster nor the movie does not really offer.
The movie tells this story rather slowly, indulging in beautiful landscapes and period interiors, but one can hardly mind. It is simply a great movie with very decent performance from the cast - including Hugh Grant with a moustache. June 3, 2008

MAURICE. You will wish you had seen it sooner!

Maurice is a very, very good movie. Everything about the film is great; e.g., acting, attire at the turn of the century, weather, facial and physical gestures... It is a bit of a tear jerker; however, it has a nice ending for everyone. Or does it?

I just wish they had used more British actors. April 6, 2008

A Wonderful Film

Maurice, which is based on E.M. Forster's heartbreaking and beautiful semi-autobiographical novel of the same name is a wonderful Merchant Ivory productions.

James Wilby stars as Maurice, a young man at Cambridge who begins to develop feelings for his friend and fellow student Clive (Hugh Grant). The feeling turns out to be mutual and the friends soon fall in love with one another, but must keep their relationship secret because of the strict Edwardian society which they inhabit.

Clive maintains that the pair should keep their relationship purely "platonic" which Maurice accepts, despite feeling a need to seal their love physically. When Clive goes on a trip to Greece, he seems to snub Maurice and it soon becomes clear that he has different feelings about their affair.

Maurice is understandably heartbroken, but his ordeal is not over there. He soon discovers that Clive is engaged to be married to a woman named Anne. He is devestated. The question is, will he recover from the break-up and find love elsewhere or is he doomed to forever be without love in a society that does not accept people of his kind?

The film, which was directed by James Ivory, is a heartbreaking account of one man's struggle to accept his sexuality in a world that tells him that everything about his true inclination is wrong. It also highlights the plight of homosexuals everywhere who were forced to hide their identities because of laws against homosexuality in Britain and around the world.

The film is a joy to look at - the cinematography, the art direction and the costume design being a particular highlight - and is very beautiful, capturing the Edwardian period perfectly. James Wilby is excellent as Maurice and Hugh Grant performs well acting against type. Rupert Graves is wonderful in his supporting role as Alec Scudder, who may or may not prove to be Maurice's eventual saviour.

The actors inhabit their characters effortlessly and it is easy to feel sympathy for all of them in different ways - Maurice, Clive, Alec and even Anne, for that matter - which creates an emotional journey filled with both highs and lows.

An often overlooked and forgotten film, Maurice is brilliant and despite the long running time, should appeal to almost anyone with an open mind, a love of E.M. Forster or even of Merchant Ivory productions in general. This is a must see! February 18, 2008

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