The House of Mirth (2000)

Director:

Terence Davies

Writers:

Edith Wharton (novel)
Terence Davies (written by)

Release Date:

27 October 2000 (Ireland)

Genre:

Romance | Drama

Tagline:

When a woman has the beauty men admire and women envy...it is wise to tread carefully.

Plot:

A woman risks losing her chance of happiness with the only man she has ever loved.

Plot Keywords:

Lawyer | Suicide | Letter | Debt | Secretary

Awards:

5 wins & 13 nominations

Cast

Gillian Anderson	...	Lily Bart
Dan Aykroyd	...	Augustus 'Gus' Trenor
Eleanor Bron	...	Mrs. Julia Peniston, Lily's Aunt
Terry Kinney	...	George Dorset
Anthony LaPaglia	...	Sim Rosedale (as Anthony Lapaglia)
Laura Linney	...	Bertha Dorset
Jodhi May	...	Grace Julia Stepney
Elizabeth McGovern	...	Mrs. Carry Fisher
Eric Stoltz	...	Lawrence Selden
Penny Downie	...	Judy Trenor
Pearce Quigley	...	Percy Gryce
Helen Coker	...	Evie Van Osburgh
Mary MacLeod	...	Mrs. Haffen (as Mary Macleod)
Paul Venables	...	Jack Stepney
Serena Gordon	...	Gwen Stepney

Also Known As:

Chez les heureux du monde (France)
Haus Bellomont (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated PG for thematic material.

Runtime:

140 min

Country:

UK | France | Germany | USA

Language:

English | French

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:L | South Korea:12 | Argentina:Atp | Australia:PG | Finland:S | France:U | Netherlands:AL | Norway:A | Spain:13 | Sweden:7 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | UK:PG | USA:PG | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Glasgow, Strathclyde, Scotland, UK

Company:

Arts Council of England

Trivia:

Shooting angles for some outdoor scenes had to be changed because groups of "The X Files" (1993) fans congregated in the background to see Gillian Anderson.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The film, which takes place during 1905-07, depicts several characters attending a performance of the opera "Cosi fan tutte" - but that opera was first performed in New York in 1922.

Quotes:

[to Lawrence]
Lily Bart: Love me. But don't tell me so.

Movie Connections:

References Letter from an Unknown Woman (1948)

Soundtrack:

Soave Sia Il Vento

Merchant-Ivory in darker, deeper hues

From the moment she steps out of the smoke at a train station, Gillian Anderson is amazing as Lily Bart, a woman torn between being true to herself and securing a place in her world. Althought the movie is set in the early 1900's, her struggle with making a life for herself while surrounded by treacherous friends with their own agendas feels completely relevant. Working from a terrific script, Anderson draws nuance, meaning and emotion from her lines and the circumstances in which she finds herself, as she puts it, "doing the wrong thing at the right time". The journey she took me through in this movie was invigorating, thought provoking, engrossing and ultimately heartbreaking. The supporting cast, including Day Akroyd, Anthony LaPaglia and Terry Kinney, hold their own and fill out the movie beautifully. But Laura Linney deserves special mention as Lily's cunning, manipulative rival posing as a friend. Although very much a period piece, the film goes beyond some of the best pictures of Merchant-Ivory in bringing to life Wharton's novel, presenting a darker movie about the consequences of choices and the cost of guilelessness in a ruthless world. It also pulls Scully out of her basement and into the spotlight where her talents deserve to have her.