The Europeans (1979)

The Europeans (1979) (DVD) (*)

~~$20.99~~ $14.97

Screened, competed or awarded at:
BAFTA Awards
Cannes Film Festival
Golden Globes
Oscar Academy Awards
Other Film Festival Awards

Language Selections:
English ( Dolby Digital 2.0 )
Spanish ( Dolby Digital 2.0 )
Spanish ( Subtitles )

Product Origin/Format:
Spain ( PAL/Region 2 )

Running Time:
90 min

Aspect Ratio:
Anamorphic Widescreen (1.78:1)

Special Features:
Cast/Crew Interview(s)
Filmographies
Interactive Menu
Music Video
Scene Access
Trailer(s)

Movie filmed in 1979 and produced in:
United Kingdom ( Great Britain, Ireland )

Directed By:
James Ivory

Written By:
Henry James
Ruth Prawer Jhabvala

Actors:
Lee Remick ..... Eugenia Young
Robin Ellis ..... Robert Acton
Wesley Addy ..... Mr. Wentworth
Tim Choate ..... Clifford
Lisa Eichhorn ..... Gertrude
Kristin Griffith ..... Lizzie Acton
Nancy New ..... Charlotte
Norman Snow ..... Mr. Brand
Helen Stenborg ..... Mrs. Acton
Tim Woodward ..... Felix Young
Gedda Petry ..... Augustine

Synopsis:

This entertaining story from a delicious early novel by Henry James takes place in a New England Arcadia that stands for everything beautiful, pure and good. Into this Eden come a sophisticated European brother and sister who turn up unexpectedly on the doorstep of their staid American cousins, the Wentworths. The fortune-hunting Eugenia (Lee Remick) and her high-spirited brother Felix (Tim Woodward) turn this Puritan world upside down. The film concludes with three betrothals, like a Mozart opera. But Eugenia has been too clever and must return to Europe as empty-handed as she came.

It's the mid-nineteenth century. Adult siblings Felix Young and Eugenia Munster were born and raised in Europe and have a somewhat bohemian lifestyle reflective of their travels throughout Europe. Felix, who has little money, is interested in painting and the arts. Eugenia is a baroness by marriage. They decide to travel to New England to meet their maternal uncle and their three cousins, the Wentworths, for the first time, the Wentworths who live just outside of Boston. The Wentworths are highly puritanical, the uncle in particular who looks to a neighbor, Mr. Brand, to provide a moral compass to his three children, especially the shy Gertrude, who Mr. Brand wants to marry. The Wentworths are somewhat suspicious as to the reason for their relatives' visit, but nonetheless the uncle puts them up in a neighboring house on their property. While Felix enjoys the company of his cousins - especially Gertrude - Eugenia is a bit more standoffish and cognizant of the real reason for their trip to the United States. For Eugenia, another of their uncle's cousins, a Mr. Robert Acton, may just fit the bill related to her goal, which concerns her current marriage and financial security.

It's the fall of 1850, a few miles outside Boston. The household of the dour Mr. Wentworth receives two unannounced visitors from Europe, Eugenia and Felix, the daughter and son of his half sister. Gertrude, one of Wentworth's two daughters, is instantly infatuated with her cousins, thinking them sophisticated and worldly. She turns her back on the local Unitarian minister, Mr. Brand, who has been calling on her, to delight in the pleasure and amusement Felix offers. Another wealthy neighbor, Mr. Acton, is attracted to Eugenia, who is going through a divorce with a European aristocrat. Are the Americans being used by the penniless Europeans? Or is there real affection?

This product was added to our catalog on Thursday 19 December, 2019.