Howards End (1992)

In Edwardian England, a spinster (Emma Thompson in an Oscar winning performance) befriends the wife (Vanessa Redgrave) of a wealthy businessman (Anthony Hopkins). After the wife's death, the husband finds himself attracted to her friend and proposes marriage. But extenuating circumstances begin to tear at their relationship including the new wife's younger sister (Helena Bonham Carter) who resents the husband's lackadaisical attitude toward the poor and more specifically, a young clerk (Samuel West) whose life has been devastated because of the husband's advice. Based on the novel by E. M. Forster and directed by James Ivory. The jewel in the Merchant/Ivory crown, HOWARDS END is near perfect. Every element falling into place: the acting, the screenplay, the cinematography, the score etc. for an exceptional cinematic experience. The scenes between Thompson and Redgrave are pure gold. Even though the film runs nearly 2 1/2 hours, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala's screenplay has no superfluous fat. It's only about halfway through the film that you begin to get an uncomfortable feeling that things aren't going to end well and they don't though the film's brief coda assuages the unpleasant feeling. With Nicola Duffett, James Wilby, Prunella Scales, Adrian Ross Magenty and Jemma Redgrave.