Wharton is one of those writers whose books seem to get translated to film a lot. Perhaps this is because directors can do lavish costuming, gloriously complex sets, and still manage to have a plot that is intersting and intense to modern viewers. Some of the films have been great, others are of interest only to a true fan of Wharton's work who wants to see every detail. The films that I like best that have been made from Wharton's books are listed below:

The most recently done film version is The House of Mirth, directed by Terrence Davies in 2000. Gillian Anderson stars as the "doomed" Lily Bart. Salon.com gave it a good review, stating:

Which century is this again? Wharton's story, and Davies', takes place at the opening of a different one, one that held forth all kinds of promises, some of which it at least partially fulfilled, especially for women. But as Anderson plays her, Lily Bart isn't any kind of feminist symbol; she's simply a woman who doesn't fit, regardless of when and where she lives or of her place in society.

Roger Ebert, who I listen to occasionally, gives the film good ratings too, saying that the film "might seem slow to some viewers unless they are alert to the raging emotions, the cruel unfairness and the desperation that are masked by the measured and polite words of the characters." Sounds yummy to me.

I did picture Lily Bart as darker (dark brown hair) although I'm not sure why. I do think it's great for Anderson to break out of her sci-fi reputation, and I couldn't think of a genre more different. You can view the movie trailer here.

Another favorite film version of a Wharton novel is Martin Scorcese's 1993 rendition of The Age of Innocence. The Age of Innocence is the Wharton novel most often made into film (see list below for all versions). The 1993 version is the one I like. Starring Michelle Pfieffer as the Countess Olenska, Daniel Day Lewis as Newland and Winona Ryder as May Archer, this film was what inspired me to read the novel. I know, never read a novel and a movie together-- but they seemed to work. I liked the elaborate sets and slow action camera shots that Scorsese used to heighten the sense of living in thicker air-- the scene where The Countess strolls across a room towards Newland Archer, wearing a voluptuous red dress and smiling that smile Pfieffer does so well is like concentrated Wharton. Check out Roger Ebert's plug of the movie; in general, I find that critics liked this one, too (see, I'm pretty good at this). The biggest complaint about this film version seems to be that critics were shocked the Scorcese, better known for big action movies like Goodfellas, could deal with a film about Victorian "manners." Hey, we all know that Queen Victoria was much tougher than any mafia gangster ever could've been. Interestingly, they have published a bound version of the shooting script, which was written by Scorsese and Jay Cocks. You might also be interested in the coffee table book written by Scorsese about how the film came to be. This is much more about the film, though, than it is about the novel by Wharton.

There is an interesting site about teaching Wharton's films, put out by the National Council of Teachers of English, which has a nice handout written by Del Hughes. Basically, though, you can explore issues from Wharton's films here.

I'll list other film versions of Wharton's work below, courtesty the Internet Movie Database, for the sake of completeness, but these are variously good and bad (i.e. this list is not necessarily a guarantee that you'll love it). Check each individual page for reviews and ratings. Generally, the IMDB reviewers do a pretty good job rating movies so I would trust their ratings. Some of these will be hard to find, and some will have to be rentals rather than purchases (for example, Old Maid with Bette Davis is not being released any more-- but you can find some used copies at Amazon.)

The Reef (1997)... aka Passion's Way (1999) The Buccaneers (1995) TV Mini Series Ethan Frome (1993) The Children (1990) ... aka Meine liebe Rose (1990) (West Germany) House of Mirth (1981) (TV) Summer (1981) (TV) Ethan Frome (1960) (TV) The Old Maid (1939) Strange Wives (1935) (from the novel Bread Upon the Waters) The Age of Innocence (1934) The Marriage Playground (1929) (from the novel The Children) The Age of Innocence (1924) The Glimpses of the Moon (1923) The House of Mirth (1918)

Page created by Kim Wells, March 12, 2001.