Truly Dreadful Film

Clever and entertaining enough to recommend even to members of the 1%

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.

The Pulitzer Prize was awarded to this novel. This film is magnificently brought to the screen giving it full color and a great cast. Granted, the Author is long gone, and the prize was long ago, but the script adaptation is solid giving life to America prior to 1920. Filming for this was done in Philadelphia, Pa, Troy, NY, the Bronx, and Paris, France among other locations. The locations are all treated well. Daniel Day-Lewis heads a major cast and has the dilemma of Michelle Pfeiffer versus Winona Ryder who in real life is 13 years her junior. In all these period costumes, they both look magnificent. The period of refinement and elegance fits all of them well.This is a drama and as such could tend to bore many viewers, but those who appreciate drama and acting will enjoy this one. Geraldine Chaplin is particularly effective in this movie too. It is mostly the story of Newland Archer becoming engaged and married to a beautiful young woman while falling in love with a Countess who has recently been widowed but will not allow herself to consummate a love she has for him too. The ending of this is very symbolic of the whole story of the real love that is but yet never realized. It is one of quiet rejection.

I was shocked that this movie was absolutely boring and dull because well known actors such as Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer and Winona Ryder were involved in this. I honestly thought this was gonna be a unique movie from the very start but it just didn't give me that vibe to let me know that the movie would be enjoyable to watch!I just don't think this movie should've been awarded an Oscar and other nominations. It would be probably better to have added in more main characters since three really didn't seem to be enough for the movie..I definitely consider this not a good movie to watch, it would most likely waste your time!

Certainly a Change of Pace for Director Martin Scorsese, this is an Effort that is not Completely Successful. Overwhelming in its Depiction of Surface, the Sets, Costumes and Incredible Attention to Detail, the Film's Characters have the Difficult Task of Creating Emotional Attachment when all those Feelings are Suppressed even when it is Convenient to do Otherwise.The Best Scenes are when Newton Archer (Daniel Day-Lewis slightly miscast) Defends Ellen (Michelle Pfeiffer completely miscast). It is here that the Smoldering Fire Sparks a Display of Compassion and Passion where the Movie comes Alive. Also, the Granny Scenes Occasionally Liven Up the Deadly Boring Proceedings because there a Glimpse of Humanity is shown where there Simply is none Existent Elsewhere.These People do Exist in a Completely Non-Expressive Cover of Dress and Dining of the most Elegant and it is these Artificial Environs that are the Real Stars in this Exquisite Exercise in Elegance. Gorgeous to Look at, it is the Characters and the Screenplay that make this a Vacant Victorian Story that is not so Appealing. The Film has the Inenviable Task of making Watchable a Virtually Uninteresting, at least on the Surface, Parade of People that Deserve Little Attention.So the Point is Made and it is not Very Dramatic because there is just no There There and Scorsese takes Another Point of View. That of the Camera.

The Age of Innocence"You gave me my first glimpse of a real life. Then you asked me to go on with a false one"- Newland Archer Newland Archer (Daniel Day-Lewis) is a well-respected lawyer who begins to fall for Ellen Olenska (Michelle Pfeiffer) whilst he is engaged to her cousin Mary Welland (Winona Ryder). There is much more depth to the film than just an internal love story as it expresses the lives of the upper class in New York. The exclusivity and distinction of the elite is beautifully shown in this film of passion and loss as the masquerade of the period politics slowly fall apart in the eyes of Newland Archer.The film Age of Innocence takes us into a new realm of skill shown by Martin Scorsese with this brilliant period piece set on the novel by Edith Wharton written in 1920. Scorsese's repertoire has largely held the grit of films such as Taxi Driver, Mean Streets and Goodfellas, but with Age of Innocence there is a more delicate touch to the way the plot unfolds. The novel was introduced to Scorsese by Jay Cocks, who then co wrote the script with him in is his first attempt at converting English literary into a film. What makes this a magnificent piece is Scorsese's understanding of creating an atmosphere that constantly intrigues despite the fact little may seemingly be going on. It is the lighting of the sets that really captures the period of the film, as the candles and fires flicker on the screen. The whole mood of the film stirs within the use of the shadows Scorsese spreads over those whose unorthodox nature could not fit into the mold of the strict high family politics. The beautiful set designs and Academy Award winning costumes brings real sincerity to the exclusion of the high society. The three central performances from Daniel-Day Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer and Winona Ryder hold the whole social orchestration of the time perfectly. Winona Ryder puts in the performance of her career portraying a delicate and indifferent fabrication to the political tide around her that she rose to with covert ease. A long period of time is covered in the film as we follow their lives and it is the interaction between the central three that stops the film stable as they create the subtle changes with age.The run time is fairly long, standing at two hours twenty minutes, with a long period of the characters lives being covered. There are often jumps of years at a time, which could make for a very messy narrative, however, Joanne Woodward pieces, this together with some elegant narration. It is perfectly condensed into longer sequences and will often include traits of the time during lingering camera work on specifics of the time.It is a film of utter splendour, as we watch the elite play their own little game of beauty, which will no doubt put many off. It is worth seeing to witness a masterful paintbrush by Martin Scorsese who shows a new range of skills that continues to put him in the running as one of the greatest directors of all time.