Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Simply A Masterpiece

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

The local cinematheque screened a few weeks ago the 2000 adaptation of Edit Wharton's now classic novel The House of Mirth, whose first screen adaptation to screen dates back from 1918.The House of Mirth is a combination of a social and personal drama the story of the descent of a young woman from high class into poverty, of the price to be paid for keeping the dignity in a society that seems to define rigidly the place and track in life of each human being according to their birth, their place in the social hierarchy, their sex, and their material fortune. The American society at the beginning of the 20th century does not seem to resemble too much to the land of all opportunities described in many other literary or cinematographic works. Lily Bart, the apparently apparently frivolous character who stays in the center of the action is smart and beautiful, apparently high in the social hierarchy but too poor to be allowed to make her own choices and play a different role than the one of the well-married girl, or of the woman supported by rich and powerful men. Her refuse to surrender to the social pressure ends in catastrophic results.12 years only after it was made Terence Davies' film looks much older than it's age. A team of TV stars from the 80s (Eric Stolz), 90s (Gilian Anderson) and 2000s (Anthony LaPaglia) do more than a decent job, but I felt like the adaptation to screen borrowed some of the stiffness of the social environment described in the story. More passion, more nuances in the relationship between the characters would have made this film more interesting. Gilian Anderson is a great actress but her discrete acting seems pushed one step too far, her breaking down comes too late to give meaning to her self-sacrifice. This too academic version to screen is interesting mostly for the fans of the social historical American dramas. Which is kind of a paradox as the novel was at its time an exercise in contemporary prose. But this is also history.

"The House of Mirth" is that rare thing, a British film about America. Officially it is an international co-production, but it was not only made by a British director, Terence Davies, but also shot on location in Britain, even though most of the action is supposed to take place in and around New York. (As a keen birdwatcher I have to say that I could tell that it had been shot on this side of the Atlantic from some of the typically European birdsong in the background). It is, in fact, a good example of the sort of costume drama at which the British film industry has traditionally excelled, although there have been some notable American examples such as Scorsese's "The Age of Innocence", also based upon a novel by Edith Wharton.The action takes place in 1905. At the opening of the film its heroine, the socialite Lily Bart, appears to be living a charmed life. She is young, beautiful and the niece of the wealthy Mrs Julia Peniston. Yet her position is more precarious than she realises and the film traces her downfall from wealth into poverty and from respectability into social disgrace. The title is deeply ironic; this is a tragedy, not a comedy, and there is nothing about Lily's position that might arouse mirth. Wharton took her title from the Biblical book of Ecclesiastes: "The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning; but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth".The implication of this title is that those who live merely for mirth or pleasure are foolish, and certainly Lily's downfall is partly the result of her own folly; she incurs, for example, large gambling debts which she is unable to meet. Yet it is also partly the result of the hypocrisy of American high society in the early years of the twentieth century. Although some Americans tried to pretend that theirs was a classless society, the ultra-rich of New York could be just as ruthlessly snobbish as their counterparts in London, Paris or Berlin, and just as ruthlessly unforgiving of those who fell foul of society's unwritten rules. Lily's reputation is damaged not only by her gambling habit, which alienates her puritanically religious aunt, but also by an untrue allegation of an affair with a married man. (The allegation is made by the man's wife, who wants to distract attention from her own adultery). At times Lily's own good nature works against her; she has the opportunity to revenge herself on the woman who has unjustly accused her, but refuses to take it because to do so would also compromise Lawrence Selden, the man she loves.The star of the film is Gillian Anderson, which surprised me when I first saw it in the cinema as I had previously only though of her as "that bird from the X-Files" or the girl who, a few years earlier, had been voted "Most Beautiful Woman in the World" by the readers of FHM magazine. (This aroused some ungallant comments from members of the anti-redhead brigade, who opined that Gillian had only won the title because readers had confused her with her namesake Pamela). "The House of Mirth", however, proved two things. Firstly, it proved that Gillian was a much more versatile actress than I had hitherto supposed. Secondly, it proved (to my satisfaction at least) that she was far more ravishingly beautiful than Pamela Anderson ever knew how to be. Her Lily Bart is one of the great tragic heroines of modern cinema; I was reminded of Nastassia Kinski's performance in "Tess", another period drama about a beautiful young woman who struggles vainly to escape a cruel and inexorable fate.There are other good performances from Laura Linney as Lily's accuser, the spiteful Bertha Dorset, from Dan Aykroyd (an actor I more normally associate with comedy) as the financier Gus Trenor who unsuccessfully attempts to seduce Lily, Jodhi May as Lily's quiet but scheming and hypocritical cousin Grace Stepney, who eventually inherits Mrs Penistone's fortune and Eric Stoltz as Selden.Like many British period dramas, the film is beautifully photographed and makes use of some sumptuous sets and costumes. My one criticism would be that, in the early scenes it moves too slowly, but the pace gradually quickens as Lily's tragic drama is played out to its climax; the ending is particularly moving. This is one of the finest period dramas of recent years. A film to savour. 9/10

The House Of Mirth is a substantial, well-upholstered picture with more sinew and power than almost any other period drama of recent times... a brilliant film from a great British director. A cash-strapped single woman (Gillian Anderson) in early 20th-century New York fails to marry for love or money, and finds herself stuck with a scandalous debt that threatens to bankrupt her entirely.The film is a stunning adaptation of Edith Wharton's novel about a doomed social butterfly, elegantly crafted on a limited budget, and built around a piercing lead performance of Singer Sargent-esquire luminosity. It makes harsh points about an even harsher social order, and makes them feel fresh.

Technically this film was great & it was a good story. The acting was excellent, BUT... it was also an annoying film for the following reasons:1) She seemed so intelligent, how did she also make such a stupid mistake as to leave in the middle of an opera with a married man where everyone could see her go - what was she thinking?! 2) Why was Lily so damn proud as to not accept help from 2 well-intentioned friends, one of whom actually loved her & she didn't have the sense to follow her heart! Was this realistic? (Oh ya, it's a film!) 3) Why didn't she use those damning letters to re-enter the society she craved (tho why quite frankly, when it was by and large so hypocritical, is beyond me!)? 4) And to cap it all, she decides working is just too problematic so she tops herself! What a waste! 5) Why did Lawrence not chase her more if he was really interested in her? What game was he playing at? So he annoyed me!She seemed so clever at the beginning - I thought she'd find a way out of her troubles. Sorry but she was a complex & silly woman. (Yes, it's judgmental.)I'm annoyed that this film has affected me days after I saw it.7/10 from me