The Europeans (1979)

A Baroness (Lee Remick) and her younger brother (Tim Woodward) leave Europe to visit their prosperous, distant American cousins in Massachusetts. The woman sets her sights on finding a wealthy American husband while her younger brother falls in love with his cousin (Lisa Eichhorn). Based on the short novel by Henry James and directed by James Ivory (HOWARDS END). One of the least successful of the many literary adaptations done by the Merchant Ivory duo. The film's screenplay by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala is faithful to the James novel so the problem doesn't lie there, it lies in the execution. It's too dry as Ivory treats the source material as sacrosanct and any sign of life would be disrespectful. The soundtrack is laden with snippets of Schubert, Schumann, Verdi and Stephen Foster to show how tasteful the whole enterprise is. The performances are weak, the actors are stiff and many seem just plain wrong for their roles. Not even the usually reliable Remick is able to muster up much allure which is regretful because that's what the part needs. Only Wesley Addy as the New England family's patriarch manages to give an acceptable performance. On the plus side, the film has a luscious look thanks to Larry Pizer's (ISADORA) cinematography which turns Massachusetts and New Hampshire into an autumn paradise and Judy Moorcroft's Oscar nominated costume design is impeccable. With Robin Ellis, Kristin Griffith, Tim Choate, Nancy New and Norman Snow.