The Bostonians

Released Aug 2, 1984

2 hr. 2 min.

Drama

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81%

16 Reviews

Tomatometer

37%

1,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Based on Henry James' novel, Merchant-Ivory's The Bostonians tells the story of Olive Chancellor, a 19th-century Boston woman dedicated to the suffrage movement who takes Verena Tarrant, a radical young woman, under her wing. But her cousin, is a male chauvinist who wants to marry and domesticate the young woman and a battle of wills ensues over her future.

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StephenPaul C

The greatest 02 hours: and 02 minutes ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/07/23

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steve d

The story is better than the script.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

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Audience Member

You know I'm kind of sick of it but also it hasn't happened in a while, James Ivory makes the same damn movie every time in his career from the 80's to 90's. Seriously if I stumbled on this on TV without a label, I could easily confuse it for Room with a View, Howard's End, or Remains of the Day. Some of the acting is fine it's just such a drag to get through. Of course in any James Ivory movie, the costumes, art direction, and production design are wonderful but story is just not a factor in this

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/19/23

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Audience Member

Nominated for 2 Oscars, a fascinating look at an era we can only dream about, post Civil War Boston. Marvelous costuming, sets, this movie is truely unusual for today's audiences (it requires a brain). Ostensibly about the suffreget (woman's rights) movement, this film depicts several subplots. One about a love affair and the other about sustaining a woman's movement. [img]http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRbgB0DEkh67nKt-xfZBXTvlOjxoi5E2JITbh8rBvZpX6BiGugeig[/img] Christopher Reeve "The Bostonians is a novel by Henry James, first published as a serial in The Century Magazine in 1885-1886 and then as a book in 1886. This bittersweet tragicomedy centers on an odd triangle of characters: Basil Ransom, a political conservative from Mississippi; Olive Chancellor, Ransom's cousin and a Boston feminist; and Verena Tarrant, a pretty, young protégée of Olive's in the feminist movement." -- Wikipedia [img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/86/TheBostonians.jpg/200px-TheBostonians.jpg[/img] While this is slow paced and high drama, its not for everyone and doubt for anyone in the post-2000 generation. Still one can only hope that quality cinema has an appeal even in the action-adventure era. NOTES: 1 Mark Twain vowed that he would rather be damned to John Bunyan's heaven than read the book. 2 To put it mildly, The Bostonians [as a book] was not well received by contemporary critics, especially on the western side of the Atlantic. Author James' portrayal of Boston reformers was denounced as inaccurate and unfair, especially because some felt James had satirized actual persons in the novel. 3 Vanessa Redgrave's performance received high marks, however, 1984 Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for Best Actress. Further, the movie earned other award nominations for costume design and cinematography. [img]http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcR1AJkcJbvM9QGXU8elfnk4ttfIUVJuN5RJ1BGVYtbC8GRLDideIw[/img] SEE the entire film here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4L-qel7AQs [img]http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTG3zvMJvVA1G6d_Bu9TtE5RnMfFuDMIQZClj2tjq6BUW07wJ5E[/img] REVIEWS: 40% viewed on 5/9/05 (Sun) I think there are few standard things you can look forward in the Merchant Ivory movies. Great cinematography. Great performan... 30% Awful. A poor script by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, woefully miscast, and poorly directed. True, the basic story line from the Henry James novel is intrigu... [img]http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTPqYQZXf2JGjRgQ8wwZK0Wb3l9e7DXJV0hXxazdjOVhXVerCiKpA[/img] Cast Christopher Reeve - Basil Ransom Vanessa Redgrave - Olive Chancellor Jessica Tandy - Miss Birdseye Madeleine Potter - Verena Tarrant Nancy Marchand - Mrs. Burrage Wesley Addy - Dr. Tarrant Barbara Bryne - Mrs. Tarrant Linda Hunt - Dr. Prance Charles McCaughan - Music Hall Police Officer Nancy New - Adeline John Van Ness Philip - Henry Burrage Wallace Shawn - Mr. Pardon Awards 1985 National Society of Film Critics Won: Best Actress - Vanessa Redgrave 1985 Golden Globes Nominated: Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama - Vanessa Redgrave 1985 Academy Awards Nominated: Best Actress in a Leading Role - Vanessa Redgrave Nominated: Best Costume Design - Jenny Beavan, John Bright 1985 BAFTA Awards Nominated: Best Costume Design - Jenny Beavan, John Bright [img]http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRFbZk3xc10bP4PxO3m0DQaNbM5EPA_R2CbzS4R0JJy8jQP35DGGQ[/img] Directed by James Ivory Produced by Ismail Merchant Written by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala Based on The Bostonians by Henry James Cinematography Walter Lassally Distributed by Almi Pictures (USA) Release date(s) 2 August 1984 (United States) Running time 122 minutes Country United Kingdom United States [img]http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/0a/The_Bostonians.jpg/220px-The_Bostonians.jpg[/img]

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/19/23

Full Review

Audience Member

viewed on 5/9/05 (Sun) I think there are few standard things you can look forward in the Merchant Ivory movies. Great cinematography. Great performances. Nice costumes. Nice music. But do please expect something on the boring side. With all respect, with a bow. I think I like THE REMAINS OF THE DAY most. It is adapted from a novel by Henry James which is basically about one morbid old maid (as correctly described by a character) and a man figthing over a girl. Yup. Lesbianism, all in the name of feminism. The ending is queer too. Pun not intended. So what's the message in that speech? In the movie? Ok, there is one pleasant surprise, 'Superman' Christopher Reeve is good with that Southern accent. Rating: C

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

01/14/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Fair attempt at showing the roots of the US suffrage movement, although it's not the only theme as this is also an old-fashioned love story. The problem with it is that there is very little stimulus within the script.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/06/23

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James Ivory

Director

Christopher Reeve

Basil Ransome

Vanessa Redgrave

Olive Chancellor

Madeleine Potter

Verena Tarrant

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The Bostonians: Trailer 1

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Pauline Kael

New Yorker

There’s every reason in the world to read the book, and to do it before you see the movie (so that you don’t let the movie images saturate what you read). The only good reason to see the film version is Vanessa Redgrave’s performance as Olive Chancellor.

Sep 13, 2023

Full Review

Vincent Canby

New York Times

''The Bostonians'' is, from its opening shot to last, a rare delight, a high comedy with tragic undertones, acted to passionate perfection by a cast of the best actors ever assembled by the Merchant-Ivory-Jhabvala team.

Dec 6, 2018

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Sheila Benson

Los Angeles Times

James' story is so fascinating and Redgrave so urgently fine that you can lose sight of these lapses and have an eminently satisfying time.

Dec 6, 2018

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Sabina Dana Plasse

Film Threat

Although the film is basic in its production and camera work, the story is not without profound depth in the concept that the battle continues to rage for women to have equal rights and freedoms with men no matter the time and place.

Rated: 8/10

Sep 26, 2022

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Molly Haskell

Video Review

Ivory, working in concert with his longtime producer-partner Ismael Merchant and screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, possesses an abundance of those civilized virtues we could use more of in everyday life but that are often a handicap in making movies.

Rated: 3/4

Aug 5, 2022

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B.L. Panther

The Spool

Redgrave's skill is being able to render a visibly caged interior life for Olive who is constantly living in code. There's an urgent descant to her delivery that cues us to what Olive is not saying and what she really wants to say.

Jun 16, 2021

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Synopsis

Based on Henry James' novel, Merchant-Ivory's The Bostonians tells the story of Olive Chancellor, a 19th-century Boston woman dedicated to the suffrage movement who takes Verena Tarrant, a radical young woman, under her wing. But her cousin, is a male chauvinist who wants to marry and domesticate the young woman and a battle of wills ensues over her future.

Director: James Ivory
Distributor: Almi Pictures
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 2, 1984, Original
Release Date (Streaming): May 21, 2019
Sound Mix: Surround

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