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Maurice (film)
Encyclopedia
Maurice is a 1987 British film based on the novel of the same title
by E. M. Forster
. It is a tale of homosexual love in early 20th century England
, following its main character Maurice Hall from his school days through university until he is united with his life partner.
It was produced by Ismail Merchant
via Merchant Ivory Productions
and Channel Four Films
. It was directed by James Ivory
and written by Ivory and Kit Hesketh-Harvey
. The cinematography was by Pierre Lhomme
. In the style of Merchant Ivory's A Room with a View
, old book endpapers accompany the theme music
played in minor scale
at the beginning and in major scale
at the end to bracket the film as a cinematographic novel.
The film stars James Wilby
as Maurice, Hugh Grant
as Clive and Rupert Graves
as Alec. The supporting cast included Denholm Elliott
as Dr Barry, Simon Callow
as Mr Ducie, Billie Whitelaw
as Mrs Hall and Ben Kingsley
as Lasker-Jones.
Years later, in 1909, Maurice is attending Cambridge
, where he strikes a friendship with two fellow students: the aristocratic Lord Risley and the rich and handsome Clive Durham. Durham falls in love with his friend and surprises Maurice by confessing his feelings. At first Maurice does not react favorably to the revelation. Soon, however, he realizes that he reciprocates his friend's feelings. The two friends embark in a love affair but, at Clive's insistence, their relationship remains platonic. To go further, in Durham's opinion, would diminish them both. Clive, a member of the upper class, has a promising future ahead of him and does not want to tarnish his future. Their close relationship continues after Maurice is expelled from Cambridge, and begins a new career as a stockbroker in London
.
The two friends keep their feelings secret, but are frightened when Lord Risley is arrested and sentenced to six months hard labor after soliciting sex from an army officer. Clive, afraid of being exposed as a homosexual, breaks with Maurice. After his return from a trip to Greece
, Clive, under pressure from his widowed mother, marries a naive rich girl named Anne, and settles into placid domesticity.
Heartbroken, Maurice looks for help from the family physician, Dr Barry, who dismisses Maurice's doubts as "rubbish". Maurice then turns to Lasker-Jones, who tries to cure his homosexual longings with hypnosis. During his visits to Clive's estate of Pendersleigh, Maurice attracts the attention of Alec Scudder, the under-gamekeeper who is due to emigrate with his family to Argentina
. Maurice not only fails to notice Scudder's interest in him, but initially treats him with contempt. This does not discourage Scudder, who spies on Maurice at night. Simcox, the butler at Pendersleigh, suspecting the true nature of Maurice and Clive's past relationship, gave some clues to Scudder. On a rainy night, Scudder boldly climbs a ladder and enters Maurice's bedroom through an open window. Scudder kisses Maurice, who is completely taken by surprise, but does not resist his advances.
After their first night together, Maurice, after receiving a letter from Scudder proposing they meet at Pendersleigh's boathouse, believes that Scudder is blackmailing him. Maurice returns to Lasker-Jones, who warns Maurice that England is a country which "has always been disinclined to accept human nature". When Maurice fails to appear at the boathouse, Scudder travels to London to find him.
Maurice and Scudder meet at the British Museum
and the blackmail misunderstanding is resolved. Maurice begins to call Scudder by his first name, Alec. They go to a hotel room. However, their prospects for a long-term relationship seem dim. Alec is leaving for Argentina. Maurice decides to give Alec a sendoff. He is taken aback when he does not find Alec at the port. Maurice goes to Pendersleigh and talks to Clive, telling him about Alec. Clive, who was hoping that Maurice would marry, is bewildered after hearing what has transpired. The two friends depart and Maurice goes to the boathouse looking for Alec, who is there waiting for him. Scudder tells him that he sent a telegram to Maurice stating that he was to come to the boathouse. Alec has left his family, and his plans to emigrate, to stay with Maurice, telling him, "Now we shan't never be parted."
wrote Maurice
from 1913 onwards. He did not intend to publish it while his mother was alive. He showed the manuscript to selected friends, such as Christopher Isherwood
. Forster resisted publication during his lifetime because of public and legal attitudes to homosexuality — a note found on the manuscript read: "Publishable, but worth it?" The novel was only published in 1971 after Forster's death. It was written as a traditional bildungsroman
, or novel of education. Forster, takes on a subject the problem of coming of age as a homosexual in a restrictive society. He was keen that his novel should have a happy ending, It is considered to be a minor work, in comparison with his novels Howards End
(1910) and A Passage to India
(1924).
James Ivory
was interested in making a screen adaptation after the critical and box office success achieved with another of E. M. Forster novels, A Room with a View. While involved in this earlier project Ivory had read all of Forster's books, and eventually came to Maurice. "I thought," Ivory said, "that it was interesting material and would be enjoyable to make – and also something we could make in that it wouldn't require too much organization and wouldn't cost all that much." The situation it explores seemed to him to be still relevant: "People's turmoil and having to decide for themselves how they want to live and what their true feelings are and whether they're going to live honestly with them or deny them. That's no different. Nothing's any easier, for young people. I felt it was quite relevant."
After E. M. Forster's death, the self-governing board of fellows of King's College at Cambridge inherited the rights to his books. They were initially reluctant to give permission to film Maurice. Not because of the subject matter of the novel but because it was held to be an inferior work. A film that called great attention to it would not do any good to his reputation. Ismail Merchant
, the producer of the film, conferred with them and he was very persuasive. They were favorably impressed with Merchant Ivory Productions
adaptation of A Room with a View
and relented in the end.
, was unavailable because she was busy writing her novel Three Continents. Ivory wrote the screenplay with Kit Hesketh-Harvey
, who had become connected with Merchant Ivory productions since his sister, journalist and author Sarah Sands (born Sarah Harvey), was the then wife of Julian Sands
, the leading man in A Room with a View. Kit Hesketh-Harvey, had previously written documentaries for the BBC
. He had gone to the Tonbridge School and Cambridge, where Forster was educated, and knew the background. Jhabvala was shown the script, however, and made suggestions for changes. On her advice Clive Durhams's unconvincing conversion to heterosexuality during a trip to Greece was justified by creating an episode in which Clive's university friend Risley is arrested and imprisoned after after a homosexual entrapment – enough to frighten Clive ultimately into marrying.
, was originally cast for the title role. He had separated from his wife leaving her and their son back in England to move to New York. Sands backed out at the last minute. John Malkovich
was due to take the role of Lasker-Jones. He had become a friend of Julian Sands after making together The Killing Fields
. When Sands left the project however Malkovich lost interest in the film and was replaced by Ben Kingsley
.
James Wilby
had auditioned for the role of Clive Durham's brother-in-law. When Sands left the project, Ivory considered two unknown actors for the role of Maurice: James Wilby and Julian Wadham
. Since he had already cast the dark haired Hugh Grant
as Clive, Ivory decided on the blond James Wilby over the dark-haired Julian Wadham, who was given the role as one of Maurice's stockbroker friends. Hugh Grant, who later found international stardom with Four Weddings and a Funeral
, had appeared only in one previous film, Privileged
. He was doing review comedy at the time and had lost interest in professional acting when Celestia Fox, the casting director, sent Grant to Ivory who immediately gave him the role of Clive. It helped that Grant and Wilby had worked together in Grant's only previous film made at Oxford. Rupert Graves
was cast as Alec Scudder, Maurice's working-class lover. He had appeared as Lucy Honeyhurch's young brother in A Room with a View, a performance with which he was unsatisfied, and so he appreciated the opportunity to deliver a better performance.
The supporting cast included veterans Denholm Elliott
as Dr Barry and Simon Callow
as the pedagogue Mr Ducie, both from A Room with a View. Ben Kinglsey as Lasker-Jones; Patrick Godfrey
as the butler Simcox and Billie Whitelaw
as Maurice's mother.
Maurice was shot on location largely in the halls and quadrangles of King's College
, Cambridge including interiors in the college's chapel, where Forster was educated and later returned as a Fellow. The other interiors were primarily shot at Wilbury Park, a Palladian house in Wiltshire
. Its owner, Maria St. Just, an actress and trustee of the estate of Tennessee Williams
, was a friend of Merchant and Ivory. In 1979 they had been weekend guests at Wilbury Park, which made an impression on James Ivory, who, when Maurice was being prepared, chose it to be Pendersleigh in the film, the country house where Maurice visits his friend Clive.
character of Lord Risley and his 6-month imprisonment with hard labour for homosexual conduct (he is not imprisoned in the novel), in order to dramatise the dangers of Edwardian homosexuality, and provide a plot device explaining why Clive feels he must reject Maurice. In one deleted scene released in the 2002 edition, Risley commits suicide, but this was not shown in the film.
While undergoing hypnosis by Dr. Lasker-Jones in an attempt to "cure" himself, Maurice reveals to him that he has slept with Alec Scudder. Lasker-Jones warns Maurice that at one time homosexuals were executed in Britain. In spite of this warning, Lasker-Jones, especially in the film, seems to be the most affirming character. He suggests that Maurice relocate to a country where homosexuality is more tolerated, like France or Italy.
in 1987, where Ivory was awarded a Silver Lion as Best Director, sharing the prize with Ermanno Olmi
. James Wilby and Hugh Grant were jointly awarded Best Actor, and Richard Robbins received the prize for his music. The film received favorable reviews when it opened in New York City
. Maurice received an Academy Award nomination in the Best Costume Design category.
of the film was released with a new documentary and deleted scenes with director's commentary.
Academy Awards
Maurice (novel)
Maurice is a novel by E. M. Forster. A tale of homosexual love in early 20th century England, it follows Maurice Hall from his schooldays, through university and beyond. It was written from 1913 onwards...
by E. M. Forster
E. M. Forster
Edward Morgan Forster OM, CH was an English novelist, short story writer, essayist and librettist. He is known best for his ironic and well-plotted novels examining class difference and hypocrisy in early 20th-century British society...
. It is a tale of homosexual love in early 20th century England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, following its main character Maurice Hall from his school days through university until he is united with his life partner.
It was produced by Ismail Merchant
Ismail Merchant
Ismail Merchant was an Indian-born film producer, best known for the results of his famously long collaboration with Merchant Ivory Productions which included director James Ivory as well as screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala...
via Merchant Ivory Productions
Merchant Ivory Productions
Merchant Ivory Productions is a film company founded in 1961 by producer Ismail Merchant and director James Ivory. Their films were for the most part produced by the former, directed by the latter, and scripted by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, with the noted exception of a few films. The films were often...
and Channel Four Films
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
. It was directed by James Ivory
James Ivory (director)
James Francis Ivory is an American film director, best known for the results of his long collaboration with Merchant Ivory Productions, which included both Indian-born film producer Ismail Merchant, and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala...
and written by Ivory and Kit Hesketh-Harvey
Kit Hesketh-Harvey
Christopher John "Kit" Hesketh Harvey is a British musical comic performer, translator, composer and scriptwriter.Born in Nyasaland , he was educated as senior chorister at Canterbury Cathedral and then Tonbridge School in Kent before moving on as a choral scholar under John Rutter to Clare...
. The cinematography was by Pierre Lhomme
Pierre Lhomme
Pierre Lhomme is a French Director of Photography.-Filmography:*2002 : Le Divorce by James Ivory*1999 : Cotton Mary by Ismail Merchant*1998 : Voleur de vie by Yves Angelo...
. In the style of Merchant Ivory's A Room with a View
A Room with a View (film)
A Room with a View is a 1985 British drama film directed by James Ivory and produced by Ismail Merchant. The film is a close adaptation of E. M...
, old book endpapers accompany the theme music
Theme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
played in minor scale
Minor scale
A minor scale in Western music theory includes any scale that contains, in its tonic triad, at least three essential scale degrees: 1) the tonic , 2) a minor-third, or an interval of a minor third above the tonic, and 3) a perfect-fifth, or an interval of a perfect fifth above the tonic, altogether...
at the beginning and in major scale
Major scale
In music theory, the major scale or Ionian scale is one of the diatonic scales. It is made up of seven distinct notes, plus an eighth which duplicates the first an octave higher. In solfege these notes correspond to the syllables "Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti/Si, ", the "Do" in the parenthesis at...
at the end to bracket the film as a cinematographic novel.
The film stars James Wilby
James Wilby
James Jonathon Wilby is an English film, television and theatre actor.-Early life and education:He was born in Rangoon, Burma to a corporate executive father...
as Maurice, Hugh Grant
Hugh Grant
Hugh John Mungo Grant is an English actor and film producer. He has received a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA, and an Honorary César. His films have earned more than $2.4 billion from 25 theatrical releases worldwide. Grant achieved international stardom after appearing in Richard Curtis's...
as Clive and Rupert Graves
Rupert Graves
Rupert Graves is an English film, television and theatre actor. He is best known for his role as DI Lestrade in the critically acclaimed television series Sherlock.-Early life:...
as Alec. The supporting cast included Denholm Elliott
Denholm Elliott
Denholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE was an English film, television and theatre actor with over 120 film and television credits...
as Dr Barry, Simon Callow
Simon Callow
Simon Phillip Hugh Callow, CBE is an English actor, writer and theatre director. He is also currently a judge on Popstar to Operastar.-Early years:...
as Mr Ducie, Billie Whitelaw
Billie Whitelaw
Billie Honor Whitelaw, CBE is an English actress. She worked in close collaboration with Irish playwright Samuel Beckett for 25 years and is regarded as one of the foremost interpreters of his works...
as Mrs Hall and Ben Kingsley
Ben Kingsley
Sir Ben Kingsley, CBE is a British actor. He has won an Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards in his career. He is known for starring as Mohandas Gandhi in the film Gandhi in 1982, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor...
as Lasker-Jones.
Plot
During a trip to a windswept beach, Maurice Hall, an eleven-year-old school boy, receives instructions about the "sacred mysteries" of sex from his teacher, who wants to explain to the fatherless boy the changes he would experience in puberty.Years later, in 1909, Maurice is attending Cambridge
University of Cambridge
The University of Cambridge is a public research university located in Cambridge, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest university in both the United Kingdom and the English-speaking world , and the seventh-oldest globally...
, where he strikes a friendship with two fellow students: the aristocratic Lord Risley and the rich and handsome Clive Durham. Durham falls in love with his friend and surprises Maurice by confessing his feelings. At first Maurice does not react favorably to the revelation. Soon, however, he realizes that he reciprocates his friend's feelings. The two friends embark in a love affair but, at Clive's insistence, their relationship remains platonic. To go further, in Durham's opinion, would diminish them both. Clive, a member of the upper class, has a promising future ahead of him and does not want to tarnish his future. Their close relationship continues after Maurice is expelled from Cambridge, and begins a new career as a stockbroker in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
The two friends keep their feelings secret, but are frightened when Lord Risley is arrested and sentenced to six months hard labor after soliciting sex from an army officer. Clive, afraid of being exposed as a homosexual, breaks with Maurice. After his return from a trip to Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Clive, under pressure from his widowed mother, marries a naive rich girl named Anne, and settles into placid domesticity.
Heartbroken, Maurice looks for help from the family physician, Dr Barry, who dismisses Maurice's doubts as "rubbish". Maurice then turns to Lasker-Jones, who tries to cure his homosexual longings with hypnosis. During his visits to Clive's estate of Pendersleigh, Maurice attracts the attention of Alec Scudder, the under-gamekeeper who is due to emigrate with his family to Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. Maurice not only fails to notice Scudder's interest in him, but initially treats him with contempt. This does not discourage Scudder, who spies on Maurice at night. Simcox, the butler at Pendersleigh, suspecting the true nature of Maurice and Clive's past relationship, gave some clues to Scudder. On a rainy night, Scudder boldly climbs a ladder and enters Maurice's bedroom through an open window. Scudder kisses Maurice, who is completely taken by surprise, but does not resist his advances.
After their first night together, Maurice, after receiving a letter from Scudder proposing they meet at Pendersleigh's boathouse, believes that Scudder is blackmailing him. Maurice returns to Lasker-Jones, who warns Maurice that England is a country which "has always been disinclined to accept human nature". When Maurice fails to appear at the boathouse, Scudder travels to London to find him.
Maurice and Scudder meet at the British Museum
British Museum
The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its...
and the blackmail misunderstanding is resolved. Maurice begins to call Scudder by his first name, Alec. They go to a hotel room. However, their prospects for a long-term relationship seem dim. Alec is leaving for Argentina. Maurice decides to give Alec a sendoff. He is taken aback when he does not find Alec at the port. Maurice goes to Pendersleigh and talks to Clive, telling him about Alec. Clive, who was hoping that Maurice would marry, is bewildered after hearing what has transpired. The two friends depart and Maurice goes to the boathouse looking for Alec, who is there waiting for him. Scudder tells him that he sent a telegram to Maurice stating that he was to come to the boathouse. Alec has left his family, and his plans to emigrate, to stay with Maurice, telling him, "Now we shan't never be parted."
Cast
- James WilbyJames WilbyJames Jonathon Wilby is an English film, television and theatre actor.-Early life and education:He was born in Rangoon, Burma to a corporate executive father...
as Maurice Hall - Hugh GrantHugh GrantHugh John Mungo Grant is an English actor and film producer. He has received a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA, and an Honorary César. His films have earned more than $2.4 billion from 25 theatrical releases worldwide. Grant achieved international stardom after appearing in Richard Curtis's...
as Clive Durham - Rupert GravesRupert GravesRupert Graves is an English film, television and theatre actor. He is best known for his role as DI Lestrade in the critically acclaimed television series Sherlock.-Early life:...
as Alec Scudder - Denholm ElliottDenholm ElliottDenholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE was an English film, television and theatre actor with over 120 film and television credits...
as Doctor Barry - Simon CallowSimon CallowSimon Phillip Hugh Callow, CBE is an English actor, writer and theatre director. He is also currently a judge on Popstar to Operastar.-Early years:...
as Mr. Ducie - Billie WhitelawBillie WhitelawBillie Honor Whitelaw, CBE is an English actress. She worked in close collaboration with Irish playwright Samuel Beckett for 25 years and is regarded as one of the foremost interpreters of his works...
as Mrs. Hall - Barry FosterBarry Foster (actor)Barry Foster was a British actor who appeared in numerous film roles and is known for his leading role as a Dutch detective in the ITV drama series, Van der Valk, which spanned five series over 20 years from 1972....
as Dean Cornwallis - Judy ParfittJudy ParfittJudy Parfitt is a BAFTA-nominated English theatre, film and television actress who began her career on stage in 1954.-Life and work:...
as Mrs. Durham
- Phoebe NichollsPhoebe NichollsPhoebe Nicholls is an English film, television, and stage actor. She is known for her roles as Cordelia Flyte in Brideshead Revisited and as the mother of John Merrick in The Elephant Man....
as Anne Durham - Ben KingsleyBen KingsleySir Ben Kingsley, CBE is a British actor. He has won an Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards in his career. He is known for starring as Mohandas Gandhi in the film Gandhi in 1982, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor...
as Lasker-Jones - Patrick GodfreyPatrick GodfreyPatrick Godfrey is a British actor of film, television and stage.Godfrey was born in the United Kingdom, the son of Lois Mary Gladys and Frederick Godfrey, who was a reverend...
as Simcox - Mark Tandy as Risley
- Kitty AldridgeKitty AldridgeKitty Aldridge is a British actress and writer.-Biography:After training as an actress at the Drama Centre London, Aldridge worked in film, theatre and television as an actress. She released her first novel Pop in 2001, and her second Cryers Hill was published on 1 March 2007. Aldridge is married...
as Kitty Hall - Helena MichellHelena MichellHelena Michell is an Australian actress.She is the daughter of the actors Keith Michell and Jeanette Sterke. She has appeared with them at Chichester in 1997....
as Ada Hall - Catherine RabettCatherine RabettCatherine Rabett is a British actress.She played Cecily "Cissy" Meldrum in the BBC sitcom You Rang, M'Lord?...
as Pippa Durham - Peter EyrePeter EyrePeter Eyre is an American actor.Eyre was born in New York City, New York, the son of Dorothy Pelline and Edward Joseph Eyre, a banker. He was sent to a public school in England at the age of twelve, and has been based in the country ever since. Although offered a place at the Royal Academy of...
as Rev. Borenius
Background
E. M. ForsterE. M. Forster
Edward Morgan Forster OM, CH was an English novelist, short story writer, essayist and librettist. He is known best for his ironic and well-plotted novels examining class difference and hypocrisy in early 20th-century British society...
wrote Maurice
Maurice (novel)
Maurice is a novel by E. M. Forster. A tale of homosexual love in early 20th century England, it follows Maurice Hall from his schooldays, through university and beyond. It was written from 1913 onwards...
from 1913 onwards. He did not intend to publish it while his mother was alive. He showed the manuscript to selected friends, such as Christopher Isherwood
Christopher Isherwood
Christopher William Bradshaw Isherwood was an English-American novelist.-Early life and work:Born at Wyberslegh Hall, High Lane, Cheshire in North West England, Isherwood spent his childhood in various towns where his father, a Lieutenant-Colonel in the British Army, was stationed...
. Forster resisted publication during his lifetime because of public and legal attitudes to homosexuality — a note found on the manuscript read: "Publishable, but worth it?" The novel was only published in 1971 after Forster's death. It was written as a traditional bildungsroman
Bildungsroman
In literary criticism, bildungsroman or coming-of-age story is a literary genre which focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from youth to adulthood , and in which character change is thus extremely important...
, or novel of education. Forster, takes on a subject the problem of coming of age as a homosexual in a restrictive society. He was keen that his novel should have a happy ending, It is considered to be a minor work, in comparison with his novels Howards End
Howards End
Howards End is a novel by E. M. Forster, first published in 1910, which tells a story of class struggle in turn-of-the-century England. The main theme is the difficulties, troubles, and also the benefits of relationships between members of different social classes...
(1910) and A Passage to India
A Passage to India
A Passage to India is a novel by E. M. Forster set against the backdrop of the British Raj and the Indian independence movement in the 1920s. It was selected as one of the 100 great works of English literature by the Modern Library and won the 1924 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for fiction. Time...
(1924).
James Ivory
James Ivory (director)
James Francis Ivory is an American film director, best known for the results of his long collaboration with Merchant Ivory Productions, which included both Indian-born film producer Ismail Merchant, and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala...
was interested in making a screen adaptation after the critical and box office success achieved with another of E. M. Forster novels, A Room with a View. While involved in this earlier project Ivory had read all of Forster's books, and eventually came to Maurice. "I thought," Ivory said, "that it was interesting material and would be enjoyable to make – and also something we could make in that it wouldn't require too much organization and wouldn't cost all that much." The situation it explores seemed to him to be still relevant: "People's turmoil and having to decide for themselves how they want to live and what their true feelings are and whether they're going to live honestly with them or deny them. That's no different. Nothing's any easier, for young people. I felt it was quite relevant."
After E. M. Forster's death, the self-governing board of fellows of King's College at Cambridge inherited the rights to his books. They were initially reluctant to give permission to film Maurice. Not because of the subject matter of the novel but because it was held to be an inferior work. A film that called great attention to it would not do any good to his reputation. Ismail Merchant
Ismail Merchant
Ismail Merchant was an Indian-born film producer, best known for the results of his famously long collaboration with Merchant Ivory Productions which included director James Ivory as well as screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala...
, the producer of the film, conferred with them and he was very persuasive. They were favorably impressed with Merchant Ivory Productions
Merchant Ivory Productions
Merchant Ivory Productions is a film company founded in 1961 by producer Ismail Merchant and director James Ivory. Their films were for the most part produced by the former, directed by the latter, and scripted by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, with the noted exception of a few films. The films were often...
adaptation of A Room with a View
A Room with a View (film)
A Room with a View is a 1985 British drama film directed by James Ivory and produced by Ismail Merchant. The film is a close adaptation of E. M...
and relented in the end.
Writing
After purchasing the rights to the novel, the next step was a screenplay. Ivory's usual witting partner, Ruth Prawer JhabvalaRuth Prawer Jhabvala
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, CBE is a Booker prize-winning novelist, short story writer, and two-time Academy Award-winning screenwriter. She is perhaps best known for her long collaboration with Merchant Ivory Productions, made up of director James Ivory and the late producer Ismail Merchant...
, was unavailable because she was busy writing her novel Three Continents. Ivory wrote the screenplay with Kit Hesketh-Harvey
Kit Hesketh-Harvey
Christopher John "Kit" Hesketh Harvey is a British musical comic performer, translator, composer and scriptwriter.Born in Nyasaland , he was educated as senior chorister at Canterbury Cathedral and then Tonbridge School in Kent before moving on as a choral scholar under John Rutter to Clare...
, who had become connected with Merchant Ivory productions since his sister, journalist and author Sarah Sands (born Sarah Harvey), was the then wife of Julian Sands
Julian Sands
Julian M. Sands is an English actor, known for his roles in the Best Picture nominee The Killing Fields, the cult film Warlock, A Room with a View, Arachnophobia, Vatel, the television series 24 and as Jor-El in the television series Smallville.-Career:Sands began his film career appearing in...
, the leading man in A Room with a View. Kit Hesketh-Harvey, had previously written documentaries for the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
. He had gone to the Tonbridge School and Cambridge, where Forster was educated, and knew the background. Jhabvala was shown the script, however, and made suggestions for changes. On her advice Clive Durhams's unconvincing conversion to heterosexuality during a trip to Greece was justified by creating an episode in which Clive's university friend Risley is arrested and imprisoned after after a homosexual entrapment – enough to frighten Clive ultimately into marrying.
Casting
Julian Sands, who had played the male lead in Merchant's Ivory previous film A Room with a ViewA Room with a View (film)
A Room with a View is a 1985 British drama film directed by James Ivory and produced by Ismail Merchant. The film is a close adaptation of E. M...
, was originally cast for the title role. He had separated from his wife leaving her and their son back in England to move to New York. Sands backed out at the last minute. John Malkovich
John Malkovich
John Gavin Malkovich is an American actor, producer, director and fashion designer with his label Technobohemian. Over the last 25 years of his career, Malkovich has appeared in more than 70 motion pictures. For his roles in Places in the Heart and In the Line of Fire, he received Academy Award...
was due to take the role of Lasker-Jones. He had become a friend of Julian Sands after making together The Killing Fields
The Killing Fields (film)
The Killing Fields is a 1984 British drama film about the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia, which is based on the experiences of two journalists: Cambodian Dith Pran and American Sydney Schanberg. The film, which won three Academy Awards, was directed by Roland Joffé and stars Sam Waterston as...
. When Sands left the project however Malkovich lost interest in the film and was replaced by Ben Kingsley
Ben Kingsley
Sir Ben Kingsley, CBE is a British actor. He has won an Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards in his career. He is known for starring as Mohandas Gandhi in the film Gandhi in 1982, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor...
.
James Wilby
James Wilby
James Jonathon Wilby is an English film, television and theatre actor.-Early life and education:He was born in Rangoon, Burma to a corporate executive father...
had auditioned for the role of Clive Durham's brother-in-law. When Sands left the project, Ivory considered two unknown actors for the role of Maurice: James Wilby and Julian Wadham
Julian Wadham
-Career:He has appeared on television as both Charles II and George V...
. Since he had already cast the dark haired Hugh Grant
Hugh Grant
Hugh John Mungo Grant is an English actor and film producer. He has received a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA, and an Honorary César. His films have earned more than $2.4 billion from 25 theatrical releases worldwide. Grant achieved international stardom after appearing in Richard Curtis's...
as Clive, Ivory decided on the blond James Wilby over the dark-haired Julian Wadham, who was given the role as one of Maurice's stockbroker friends. Hugh Grant, who later found international stardom with Four Weddings and a Funeral
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Four Weddings and a Funeral is a 1994 British comedy film directed by Mike Newell. It was the first of several films by screenwriter Richard Curtis to feature Hugh Grant...
, had appeared only in one previous film, Privileged
Privileged (1982 film)
Privileged is a 1982 film, the first theatrical release from the Oxford Film Foundation and was Hugh Grant's screen debut playing Lord Adrian...
. He was doing review comedy at the time and had lost interest in professional acting when Celestia Fox, the casting director, sent Grant to Ivory who immediately gave him the role of Clive. It helped that Grant and Wilby had worked together in Grant's only previous film made at Oxford. Rupert Graves
Rupert Graves
Rupert Graves is an English film, television and theatre actor. He is best known for his role as DI Lestrade in the critically acclaimed television series Sherlock.-Early life:...
was cast as Alec Scudder, Maurice's working-class lover. He had appeared as Lucy Honeyhurch's young brother in A Room with a View, a performance with which he was unsatisfied, and so he appreciated the opportunity to deliver a better performance.
The supporting cast included veterans Denholm Elliott
Denholm Elliott
Denholm Mitchell Elliott, CBE was an English film, television and theatre actor with over 120 film and television credits...
as Dr Barry and Simon Callow
Simon Callow
Simon Phillip Hugh Callow, CBE is an English actor, writer and theatre director. He is also currently a judge on Popstar to Operastar.-Early years:...
as the pedagogue Mr Ducie, both from A Room with a View. Ben Kinglsey as Lasker-Jones; Patrick Godfrey
Patrick Godfrey
Patrick Godfrey is a British actor of film, television and stage.Godfrey was born in the United Kingdom, the son of Lois Mary Gladys and Frederick Godfrey, who was a reverend...
as the butler Simcox and Billie Whitelaw
Billie Whitelaw
Billie Honor Whitelaw, CBE is an English actress. She worked in close collaboration with Irish playwright Samuel Beckett for 25 years and is regarded as one of the foremost interpreters of his works...
as Maurice's mother.
Filming
The film was made on a budget of $2.6 million that included investment by Cinecom and England's Channel 4. Maurice proved more complicated to make than Ivory had anticipated. Its fifty-four day shooting schedule, which involved working six day weeks, proved long and grueling. There was no rehearsal period, only a read-through before shooting began.Maurice was shot on location largely in the halls and quadrangles of King's College
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college's full name is "The King's College of our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge", but it is usually referred to simply as "King's" within the University....
, Cambridge including interiors in the college's chapel, where Forster was educated and later returned as a Fellow. The other interiors were primarily shot at Wilbury Park, a Palladian house in Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. Its owner, Maria St. Just, an actress and trustee of the estate of Tennessee Williams
Tennessee Williams
Thomas Lanier "Tennessee" Williams III was an American writer who worked principally as a playwright in the American theater. He also wrote short stories, novels, poetry, essays, screenplays and a volume of memoirs...
, was a friend of Merchant and Ivory. In 1979 they had been weekend guests at Wilbury Park, which made an impression on James Ivory, who, when Maurice was being prepared, chose it to be Pendersleigh in the film, the country house where Maurice visits his friend Clive.
Differences in the film
Maurice is 11 at the beginning of the film, rather than 14. The film omits almost all of the novel's philosophical dialogue, and also many subplots, such as Maurice's desire for the schoolboy Dickie (the scenes dealing with this subplot were deleted from the final cut). It expands the WildeanOscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
character of Lord Risley and his 6-month imprisonment with hard labour for homosexual conduct (he is not imprisoned in the novel), in order to dramatise the dangers of Edwardian homosexuality, and provide a plot device explaining why Clive feels he must reject Maurice. In one deleted scene released in the 2002 edition, Risley commits suicide, but this was not shown in the film.
While undergoing hypnosis by Dr. Lasker-Jones in an attempt to "cure" himself, Maurice reveals to him that he has slept with Alec Scudder. Lasker-Jones warns Maurice that at one time homosexuals were executed in Britain. In spite of this warning, Lasker-Jones, especially in the film, seems to be the most affirming character. He suggests that Maurice relocate to a country where homosexuality is more tolerated, like France or Italy.
Reception
The film had its world premiere at the Venice Film FestivalVenice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
in 1987, where Ivory was awarded a Silver Lion as Best Director, sharing the prize with Ermanno Olmi
Ermanno Olmi
Ermanno Olmi is a renowned Italian film director.-Biography:Olmi was born in Bergamo, Lombardy. He is married to Loredana Detto, who played Antonietta Masetti in Il Posto....
. James Wilby and Hugh Grant were jointly awarded Best Actor, and Richard Robbins received the prize for his music. The film received favorable reviews when it opened in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Maurice received an Academy Award nomination in the Best Costume Design category.
DVD
In 2002 a special edition DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
of the film was released with a new documentary and deleted scenes with director's commentary.
Awards
Venice Film FestivalVenice Film Festival
The Venice International Film Festival is the oldest international film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the "Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Cinematografica", the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the...
- 1987 Won, Best Actor for James WilbyJames WilbyJames Jonathon Wilby is an English film, television and theatre actor.-Early life and education:He was born in Rangoon, Burma to a corporate executive father...
& Hugh GrantHugh GrantHugh John Mungo Grant is an English actor and film producer. He has received a Golden Globe Award, a BAFTA, and an Honorary César. His films have earned more than $2.4 billion from 25 theatrical releases worldwide. Grant achieved international stardom after appearing in Richard Curtis's... - 1987 Won, Silver Lion (Best Director) for James IvoryJames Ivory (director)James Francis Ivory is an American film director, best known for the results of his long collaboration with Merchant Ivory Productions, which included both Indian-born film producer Ismail Merchant, and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala...
- 1987 Won, Golden Osella (Best Music) for Richard Robbins
Academy Awards
Academy Awards
An Academy Award, also known as an Oscar, is an accolade bestowed by the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to recognize excellence of professionals in the film industry, including directors, actors, and writers...
- 1988 Nominated, Best Costume Design (Jenny BeavanJenny BeavanJenny Beavan is a British costume designer. Beavan has won an Academy Award and has been nominated eight times, most recently for The King's Speech...
, John Bright)