Films

Kate Croy's (Helena Bonham Carter's) mother was born to wealth and privilege, but she threw it all away to marry Kate's Father (Sir Michael Gambon), a penniless opium addict who admits to having stolen from his wife. After her mother's death, Kate is offered an opportunity to return to the life her mother gave up. There is one condition, however: Kate must sever all of her old ties, not only to her father, but also to her lover, the muck-raking journalist Merton Densher (Linus Roache), whom she has promised marriage. Kate reluctantly agrees to this, and in the meantime becomes friendly with "the world's richest orphan", Milly Theale (Alison Elliott), an American making the Grand Tour. Desperate to see Kate, Merton crashes a party that she and Milly are attending, and Milly is attracted to him. When Kate learns that Milly is dying, she comes up with a plan to have her cake and eat it too, but all does not go as planned.

Around 1906, the widow Lilia Herriton (Dame Helen Mirren) meets a young man when she visits Italy and marries him. The man is only a dentist without a good name, and Lilia's relatives are clearly unhappy with her choice. Lilia dies while giving birth to a son, and two relatives travel to Italy to take care of of the baby, expecting no trouble from the father.

1938. Julia Lambert (Annette Bening) and Michael Gosselyn (Jeremy Irons) are the royal couple of the London theater scene, Julia, an actress, and Michael, a former actor, who took over running the theater and its troupe after the death of their mentor, Jimmy Langton (Sir Michael Gambon). Jimmy is still constantly with Julia in spirit as she navigates through life. Besides their work, Julia and Michael lead largely separate lives, they, long ago having stopped a sexual relationship. Julia of late has been feeling disenchanted with her life, she not wanting to admit it's because she is approaching middle age. Her disenchantments manifests itself in wanting Michael to close their current production early so that she can recharge her juices, something he is reluctant to do if only for not wanting to let the theater sit empty. What Julia ends up doing instead is embarking on an affair with Tom Fennel (Shaun Evans), an adoring young American who is young enough to be her son. As Julia and Tom's relationship progresses, the more she falls in love with him and becomes dependent upon him for her happiness. But as she finds out that Tom is not as innocent and shy as he first made himself to seem, she may learn that Tom cannot be that direct conduit to happiness and fulfillment at this stage in her life. However, she may find an avenue through Tom that may truly re-energize her for herself.

Sir Robert Chiltern is a successful Government minister, well-off and with a loving wife. All this is threatened when Mrs Cheveley appears in London with damning evidence of a past misdeed. Sir Robert turns for help to his friend Lord Goring, an apparently idle philanderer and the despair of his father. Goring knows the lady of old, and, for him, takes the whole thing pretty seriously.

Brother and sister Viola and Sebastian, who are not only very close but look a great deal alike, are in a shipwreck, and both think the other dead. When she lands in a foreign country, Viola dresses as her brother and adopts the name Cesario, becoming a trusted friend and confidante to the Count Orsino. Orsino is madly in love with the lady Olivia, who is in mourning due to her brother's recent death, which she uses as an excuse to avoid seeing the count, whom she does not love. He sends Cesario to do his wooing, and Olivia falls in love with the disguised maiden. Things get more complicated in this bittersweet Shakespeare comedy when a moronic nobleman, Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and a self-important servant, Malvolio, get caught up in the schemes of Olivia's uncle, the obese, alcoholic Sir Toby, who leads each to believe Olivia loves him. As well, Sebastian surfaces in the area, and of course there is Feste, the wise fool, around to keep everything in perspective and to marvel, like we the audience, at the amazing things happening all around.

At 10, Fanny Price, a poor relation, goes to live at Mansfield Park, the estate of her aunt's husband, Sir Thomas. Clever, studious, and a writer with an ironic imagination and fine moral compass, she becomes especially close to Edmund, Thomas's younger son. Fanny is soon possessed of beauty as well as a keen mind and comes to the attention of a neighbor, Henry Crawford. Thomas promotes this match, but to his displeasure, Fanny has a mind of her own, asking Henry to prove himself worthy. As Edmund courts Henry's sister and as light shines on the link between Thomas's fortunes and New World slavery, Fanny must assess Henry's character and assert her heart as well as her wit.

Rosalind, the daughter of Duke Senior (the banished Duke), is raised at the court of Duke Frederick (who is younger brother to Duke Senior and took over his Dukedom), with her cousin Celia (daughter to Duke Frederick). She falls in love with a young man named Orlando, but before she can even think twice about it, she is banished by Duke Frederick, who threatens death if she comes near the court again. Celia, being Rosalind's best friend, goes with Rosalind (who is disguised as a boy, Ganymede) and Touchstone, the court's fool, to the forest of Arden. Upon their arrival in the forest, they happen upon Orlando and his manservant, who are fleeing the wrath of Orlando's eldest brother. What follows is an elaborate scheme devised by the cross-dressing Rosalind to find out the verity of Orlando's supposed passion for her, and to further capture his heart, through the witty and mischievous façade of Ganymede.

Upon the passing of his wealthy father and learning that his father made arrangements to provide comfortably for his long time servant, the housekeeper/cook Vera, and her son Paul, Peter is free to decide what to do with his father's vast country estate without having to worry about what would happen to Vera and Paul if he did sell. What Peter decides first and foremost is to host a New Year's Eve party at the estate with his best friends from Cambridge, a group of six, including himself, who performed together in an acting troupe, the last time being exactly ten years ago upon their graduation, that one a bawdy performance also at a New Year's party at the estate for and unappreciated by Peter's father and his conservative friends, before the six went their separate ways into adulthood. What happens at this gathering will be affected by the issues with which each person is now facing, including the secret Peter has been keeping, it the reason he felt the want to get his friends together at this time. Hollywood TV writer Andrew, Peter's best friend, is accompanied by Carol, his vacuous American television star wife, their marriage buckling under the strain of her quest for greater fame. Married jingle writers Roger and Mary are still dealing with the death of one of their twin babies nine months ago, Mary who has now turned into the most overprotective mother at the expense of all else, arguably including their marriage. Theater costume designer Sarah is accompanied by brash actor Brian, her latest boyfriend of two weeks, he who is just the latest type in her choice of the wrong man, that type in being unattainable, in Brian's case he being already married. And mousy cat lady Maggie, who works for a publishing company, in her loneliness pines for one of her friends, namely Peter, the one that is available - sort of.

Shirley's a middle-aged Liverpool housewife,who finds herself talking to the wall while she prepares her husband's chip'n'egg, wondering what happened to her life. She compares scenes in her current life to how she used to be, and feels stagnated and in a rut. But when she best friend wins an all-expenses-paid vacation to Greece for two, Shirley begins to see the world, and herself, in a better light.

In England in the early 1930s, twenty-year-old Flora Poste (Kate Beckinsale), recently orphaned, and left with only one hundred pounds sterling a year, goes to stay with distant relatives on Cold Comfort Farm. Everyone on the gloomy farm is completely around the twist, but Flora tries to sort everything out.

Basil is the story of a sheltered, naive young aristocrat who finds a friend, John Mannion and through him meets Julia Sherwin. Basil falls in love with Julia, but she is below his class, and if his father finds out, he will be disinherited and sent away, as his older brother, Ralph was, when he unwisely did the same. How can Basil keep his love and his father's respect?

The film follows 17-year-old Cassandra Mortmain, and the fortunes of her eccentric family, struggling to survive in a decaying English castle. Her father is desperate to repeat the spectacular success of his first novel, but hasn't written a word for 12 years; her exquisite sister Rose can only rail against their fate, and their Bohemian step-mother Topaz is a nudist and no help at all. Salvation comes in the form of their American landlord Simon Cotton and his brother Neil. Although initially repelled by Simon, Rose is determined to make him fall in love with her and succeeds. A wedding is arranged and Cassandra is left on the sidelines as everyone around her is drawn into a maelstrom of interconnected relationships. But events spiral out of control, and before the summer ends she will experience frustrated desire, first love, and a broken heart.

In 1838, lovely governess Elisabeth agrees to bear a child of anonymous English landowner, and he will in return pay her father's debt. At birth she, as agreed, gives up the child. Seven years later she is hired as governess to a girl on a remote Sussex estate. The father of the girl, Charles Godwin, turns out to be that anonymous landowner. So Elisabeth has to be her own daughter's governess, and she can't reveal the secret of her tie with little Louisa.

Late 19th century England; Jude, an intelligent but unworldly stonemason, looks to escape rural poverty by gaining a university education. Toward this goal, when his wife Arabella leaves him, he moves to Christminster where he meets and falls recklessly in love with Sue, his beautiful and intelligent cousin. Though the two realize their destinies are intertwined, when he reveals his previous marriage, she is deeply hurt and in a perverse act of retaliation, marries another man. Broke and denied entrance to the university, he returns to his hometown. Some time later, at the funeral for their common aunt, Sue reveals to Jude that she's desperately unhappy. Soon an illicit romance begins between them until Sue's husband steps aside finally allowing Jude and Sue to be together openly. The two have children and live together as an unmarried couple. Though they must endure social and financial hardship, the two finally find happiness together, until tragedy strikes.

Young lovers Hero (Kate Beckinsale) and Claudio (Robert Sean Leonard) are to be married in one week. To pass the time, they conspire with Don Pedro (Denzel Washington) to set a "lover's trap" for Benedick (Sir Kenneth Branagh), an arrogant confirmed bachelor, and Beatrice (Dame Emma Thompson), his favorite sparring partner. Meanwhile, the evil Don Jon (Keanu Reeves) conspires to break up the wedding by accusing Hero of infidelity. In the end, though, it all turns out to be "much ado about nothing".

In 1913 Connie Reid marries wealthy Nottingham colliery owner Sir Clifford Chatterley but he returns from the Great War disabled and in a wheelchair. Connie is loyal but begins to feel alienated as he engages a nurse, Mrs Bolton, and excludes her from pit business. Despite his desire for an heir his impotency results in a lack of sexual activity and Connie is drawn to handsome Oliver Mellors, the plain-spoken former miner her husband has engaged as his game-keeper and who represents the passion she craves. They embark upon a physical affair in Oliver's cottage but are discovered and betrayed by Mrs Bolton. Connie, now carrying Oliver's child, must choose between a pampered but joyless existence with her husband or an uncertain future with the man she has come to love.

On VE Day in May 1945, as peace is declared across Europe and London is celebrating, Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret are allowed to join the celebrations, against the Queen's wishes. The King, impressed by Elizabeth's pleading, asks her to report back on the people's feelings towards him and his midnight speech on the radio. Each girl, incognito, is chaperoned by a Royal Army officer with an itinerary to be back at Buckingham Palace by 1:00 a.m. Soon realizing the Queen's planned itinerary does not fulfill their expectations of fun and meeting the ordinary people, Margaret is the first to slip away from her escort, followed by Elizabeth. Both princesses are separated on two different buses and have their own night-long adventure. Margaret is befriended by a Royal Naval officer seeking to take advantage of what he believes is just an ordinary girl. Elizabeth meets and becomes acquainted with an airman who is AWOL (absent without leave). Margaret is led by her naval officer into a world of nightclubs, gambling, spiked drinks and brothels. Elizabeth and her airman have their own adventure trying to catch up with Margaret, which take them far beyond the 1:00 a.m. deadline into the early hours of the following morning.

Terence Davies' The House of Mirth is a tragic love story set against a background of wealth and social hypocrisy in turn of the century New York. Lily Bart is a ravishing socialite at the height of her success who quickly discovers the precariousness of her position when her beauty and charm start attracting unwelcome interest and jealousy. Torn between her heart and her head, Lily always seems to do the right thing at the wrong time. She seeks a wealthy husband and in trying to conform to social expectations, she misses her chance for real love with Lawrence Selden.