A Passage to India

PG

Released Jan 25, 1985

2h 43m

Drama

List

79%

28 Reviews

Tomatometer

79%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Based on the renowned E.M. Forster novel, this expansive period drama centers on the changing dynamic between British colonials and native locals in India during the 1920s. When an outing to explore scenic caves ends in English tourist Adela Quested (Judy Davis) accusing Indian doctor Aziz Ahmed (Victor Banerjee) of rape, the incident results in a major court case, one that reinforces tensions between the British Empire and the growing movement towards Indian independence.

Read More

Read Less

Watch on Fandango at Home

Premiered Mar 20

Buy Now

Fandango at Home

Netflix

Prime Video

Apple TV

Watch A Passage to India with a subscription on Netflix, rent on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV, or buy on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

Critics Consensus

A Passage to India is a visually striking exploration of colonialism and prejudice, although it doesn't achieve the thematic breadth of director David Lean's finest work.

Read Critics Reviews

Marcel d

A fantastic film about prejudice and injustice. Truly a classic and a must-watch!

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/24/24

Full Review

Joe B

Having seen around the time of release, I revisited it this year and was happy to see it's largely still very watchable. Whilst the characters now seem a little exaggerated, the themes still resonate today. Although seeing a browned up actor, this was early 80's, is uncomfortable.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

11/27/23

Full Review

Anna A

Magnificent. Stands the text of time

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/04/23

Full Review

Leaburn O

There are good moments but some of the characters are cartoonish and playing up to silly stereotypes. Felt far too long for a story that never really threatens to get going. Some interesting depictions of the Raj however.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

08/18/23

Full Review

Nur

Incredible & short period of time!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/13/22

Full Review

Murty C

This is a movie set in India during the British Raj days (1920's) and is based on the EM Forster novel of the same name. It is everything you would expect from a David Lean movie - a large canvas, stunning locations and outdoor photography, sublime music, and stellar acting. So, cinematically, it is magnificent. However, I gave it only three stars because the absence of an explanation to Adela's (played by Judy Davis) panicked run and accusations of rape left me scratching my head. By the way, Forster apparently never explained it in the book either. (It isn't like Kurosawa's "Roshomon", which features different accounts by eye witnesses - we never hear anyone's account.) Thus, I was left unsatisfied with film and wanting to have a word with the author. Although, I must say that I do not regret watching the movie, for the movie is a cinematic marvel. Peggy Ashcroft fully deserves her Best Supporting Actress Oscar as does Maurice Jarre for his Music Oscar. But it is a shame that Judy Davis didn't get one; the same goes for the several other nominations that the film justifiably received. The only sore point I gave is the casting of Alec Guinness as the devout Hindu, Prof. Godbole; Guinness did the best they he could but he was unconvincing as a Hindu. Perhaps, as someone said, Lean included Guinness because he considered the latter his lucky charm.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

04/05/22

Full Review

Read all reviews

Post a rating

David Lean

Director

Judy Davis

Adela

Peggy Ashcroft

Mrs. Moore

Victor Banerjee

Aziz

James Fox

Fielding

Alec Guinness

Godbole

Show Less Cast & Crew

Show More Cast & Crew

82%

81%

Tender Mercies

100%

78%

The Go-Between

86%

75%

Eleni

94%

77%

The Dead

86%

81%

84 Charing Cross Road

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

View more photos

Pauline Kael

New Yorker

The novel wants to be about unresolvability; the movie doesn’t, and isn’t. What’s remarkable about the film is how two such different temperaments as Forster’s and Lean’s could come together.

Sep 13, 2023

Full Review

Gavin Millar

Sight & Sound

It is a disappointing signpost to what lies ahead. Lean swiftly turns the narrative into a melodrama of social and sexual unease.

Feb 10, 2020

Full Review

Ian Nathan

Empire Magazine

The film, for all Lean's innate elegance, is strangely remote and unmoving. It could easily have been a Merchant-Ivory film.

Rated: 3/5

Nov 6, 2007

Full Review

Molly Haskell

Video Review

David Lean's adaptation of E.M. For- ster's great Anglo-Indian novel is, for a great deal of its 2 1/2-hours running time, an exceptionally fine and civilized movie, almost a great one.

Rated: 3/4

Jan 19, 2023

Full Review

Yasser Medina

Cinefilia

I find it solvent and very moving, populated by contagious characters and that characteristic visual style of Lean that captivates my eye when it illustrates the beautiful Indian landscapes for almost three hours. [Full review in Spanish]

Rated: 7/10

Feb 20, 2021

Full Review

Mike Massie

Gone With The Twins

By the foreseeable conclusion, it's too late to save the project from its place amongst well-intentioned, immensely mediocre moviemaking.

Rated: 5/10

Sep 6, 2020

Full Review

Read all reviews

Synopsis

Based on the renowned E.M. Forster novel, this expansive period drama centers on the changing dynamic between British colonials and native locals in India during the 1920s. When an outing to explore scenic caves ends in English tourist Adela Quested (Judy Davis) accusing Indian doctor Aziz Ahmed (Victor Banerjee) of rape, the incident results in a major court case, one that reinforces tensions between the British Empire and the growing movement towards Indian independence.

Director: David Lean
Producer: John Heyman, Edward Sands
Screenwriter: David Lean
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Production Co: EMI Films Ltd.
Rating: PG
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jan 25, 1985, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 1, 2012
Runtime: 2h 43m
Sound Mix: Surround, Stereo

Most Popular at Home Now