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The Age of Innocence Customer Reviews (25 - 27 of 33 Reviews)

A small masterpiece of smoldering unrequited passion
This 1993 film, directed by Martin Scorsese, brings the Edith Wharton novel to life. Here it is -- all the social comment and smoldering unrequited passions originally intended by the author. And now it's in living color with academy award winning costume design reflecting New York society in the 1870s.

Daniel-Day Lewis is cast as Newland Archer, the upper class young man in conflict between social convention and desire. Michelle Pfieffer plays the Countess Ellen Olenska, who has already defied convention by marrying a European and is further defying convention by leaving her husband and returning to New York. However, in spite of his attraction to the countess, Newland Archer marries the beautiful but seemingly simple May Welland, played by Wynona Ryder, whose outstanding performance won her an academy award nomination.

The film is woven together by the excellent off-screen narration by Joanne Woodward, reading excerpts from the book describing the nuances of social behavior and unspoken thoughts of the characters. The entire package comes across as a small masterpiece. I loved the book, but there is nothing like actually seeing the ballrooms, the gowns, the dinnerware and the food. There is nothing like seeing how very subtle gestures of a glance, a raised eyebrow or a change in tone of voice can have so much meaning. And there is one scene in which Newland Archer struggles with the buttons of the Countess's glove that captures an erotic sensuality in a very special way.

However, a book can be read over many days or weeks. It can be put down and thought about, the characters carried in the mind's eyes for a while. The subtleties and nuances have time to live with the reader. A film, however, must be watched all at once. And watching subtleties and nuances for a full 133 minutes can tend to be a bit boring. But film is film and a book is a book. It is not fair to judge them against each other. So keeping that in mind, I give this video an extremely high recommendation.

Beautifully crafted adaptation!
Director Martin Scorsese has stepped outside his usual genre and created a rich and faithful adaptation of Edith Wharton's novel of the same name. This film is truly a feast for the eyes, creating a visual world that perfectly reveals the society in which it is set. More importantly, the screenplay draws us into a world where emotion and its expression are defined by the rules of class. Subtlety and depth are keywords for the story in this film, and the actors compliment the presentation by giving well rounded, natural, and believable performances. Not really a film about romance, it is better to define this as a story of the outside pressures and expectations of those around the main characters (Newland Archer played by Daniel Day-Lewis, and Countess Ellen Olenska played by Michelle Pfeiffer). Their affair, denied to them by their friends and relatives, is a catalyst for our glimpse into opportunities lost, and life long bitter-sweet memories made.
This is a film not to be missed; a quiet, yet very deeply emotional and memorable movie.

Beautiful!
This is quite possibly one of the most visually stunning period pieces ever filmed. From the gorgeous opening credits to the final, perfectly-composed shot, it is an aesthetic feast for any fan of the genre.

"The Age Of Innocence" is one of my personal favorites. The film stays remarkably true to the Wharton novel, fleshing out details and bringing the permeating emotion and atmosphere to life with exquisite cinematography, directing, and acting. Michelle Pfeiffer is superb as the free-spirited but (unknowingly) scandalous Ellen Olenska, and Daniel Day-Lewis provides a fine complement as Newland Archer (though I'd hesitate to call it his best work--he comes across as rather spiritless at times--that, and Pfeiffer steals the screen every shot she's in). Winona Ryder is somewhat forgettable next to Pfeiffer, but this could be considered in keeping with their characters.

However. "The Age Of Innocence", in the tradition of character-driven period pieces, does move at a slower pace and relies on subtext and subtleties (which the acting and direction exemplify well), which many people find boring. And at nearly two and a half hours, there isn't much action to sustain someone looking for an "escape" movie--unless, of course, you're escaping to the lush but restrained world of Old New York. Also, since this film is such a departure from other Scorsese pictures, fans of his violent urban dramas might be a little surprised.

However, if you've got some time you can dedicate to watching this aesthetically gratifying portrait of desire and sacrifice (and manipulation, how can we forget that?), I highly recommend you pick it up.

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