A Passage to India, director David Lean's final film (for which he also received editing credit), breaks no new ground cinematically, but remains an exquisitely assembled harkback to such earlier Lean epics as Doctor Zhivago and Ryan's Daughter. Based on the novel by E. M. Forster, the film is set in colonial India in 1924. .. Read more
| Starring | Peggy Ashcroft, Judy Davis, James Fox, Alec Guinness |
|---|---|
| Director | David Lean |
| Genres | Drama |
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A Passage to India, director David Lean's final film (for which he also received editing credit), breaks no new ground cinematically, but remains an exquisitely assembled harkback to such earlier Lean epics as Doctor Zhivago and Ryan's Daughter. Based on the novel by E. M. Forster, the film is set in colonial India in 1924. Adela Quested (Judy Davis), a sheltered, well-educated British woman, arrives in the town of Chandrapore, where she hopes to experience the real India. Here she meets and befriends Dr. Aziz (Victor Banerjee), who, despite longstanding racial and social taboos, moves with relative ease and freedom amongst highborn British circles. Feeling comfortable with Adela, Aziz invites her to accompany him on a visit to the Marabar caves. Adela has previously exhibited bizarre, almost mystical behavior during other ventures into the Indian wilderness: this time, she emerges from the caves showing signs of injury and ill usage. To Aziz' horror, he is accused by Adela of raping her. Typically, the British ruling class rallies to Adela's defense, virtually convicting Aziz before the trial ever begins. Though he is eventually acquitted due to lack of evidence (in fact, director Lean never shows us what really happened), Aziz is ruined in the eyes of both the British and his own people-as is Adela. Woven into these proceedings is a subplot involving Adela's elderly travelling companion Mrs. Moore (Peggy Ashcroft), who through a series of plot twists too complex to describe here becomes a heroine of the Indian Independence movement. A Passage to India was nominated for several Academy Awards, scoring wins in the categories of Best Supporting Actress (Peggy Ashcroft) and Best Original Score (Maurice Jarre). A theatrical version of A Passage to India, written by Santha Rama Rau, was previously adapted for television by the BBC in the mid-1970s.~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
| Starring | Peggy Ashcroft, Judy Davis, James Fox, Alec Guinness, Nigel Havers, Victor Banerjee, Saeed Jaffrey, Clive Swift |
|---|---|
| Director | David Lean |
| Studio | MGM ENTERTAINMENT |
| Run time | DVD: 2 hrs 37 mins |
| Certificate |  |
| Genres | Drama |
| Language | DVD: English |
| Dubbed | French, Spanish |
| Hearing-impaired | English |
| Subtitles | DVD: Danish, Dutch, French, Greek, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish |
| Released | Production year: 1984 To Rent: DVD: 31 Mar 2003 |
Another film about India under the Raj seems somewhat redundant after The Jewel in the Crown, Gandhi and The Far Pavilions, but at least under David Lean's direction this is intelligent and good to look at.
- 7
- 2
Fairly disappointing
If you know anything about David Lean you can appreciate his other works, particularly The Bridge on the River Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia, Doctor Zhivago, etc. He... read more »
[Highly rated reviewer]
- 0
- 0
requires concentration
Well written, well shot. This fil may look 'old' and express out dated and probably no longer understood attitudes but it is quality and well worth ... read more »
- 2
- 0
A Passage to India
I've seen other versions of a Passage to India and this is by far the best. Although the story is well known, it would be unfair to any future viewer to ... read more »
- 1
- 1
Very dated!
But quite good for a rainy Sunday afternoon. Interesting to be shown the shocking treatment of Indian people by the British in Colonial times.
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