The Bostonians

Director: James Ivory James Ivory

Overview

Adapted by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala from the novel by Henry James, Merchant/Ivory's The Bostonians is set among the Back Bay uppercrust of the 19th century. Basil Ransom (Christopher Reeve), bored by his opulent lifestyle and his "proper" friends, is fascinated by his cousin, outspoken suffragette Olive Chancellor (Vanessa Redgrave). Basil and Olive's mutual friend is likeable, gregarious Verena Tannant (Madeleine Potter). Soon a triangle develops, albeit an unorthodox one: Basil and Olive both find themselves pursuing Verena, Basil because he is in love with her, and Olive because she wants to exploit Verena's social connections and gift for public speaking to promote her own political ideology. Lurking in the background is Verena's true love, poor-but-honest attorney Henry Burrage (John Van Ness).

Product Details

Release Date:	05/21/2019
UPC:	0741952852094
Original Release:	1984
Rating:	NR
Source:	Cohen Media Group
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:02:00
Sales rank:	45,788

Special Features

New interview with director James Ivory; Conversations from the Quad: James Ivory on The Bostonians; Original trailer; 2018 Re-release trailer

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Christopher Reeve	Basil Ransome
Madeleine Potter	Verena Tarrant
Vanessa Redgrave	Olive Chancellor
Jessica Tandy	Miss Birdseye
Nancy Marchand	Mrs. Burrage
Wesley Addy	Dr. Tarrant
Barbara Bryne	Mrs. Tarrant
Linda Hunt	Dr. Prance
Nancy New	Adeline Luna
John Van Ness Philip	Henry Burrage
Wallace Shawn	Mr. Pardon
Maura Moynihan	Henrietta Stackpole
Martha Farrar	Mrs. Farrinder
Peter Bogyo	Mr. Gracie
Barbara Byrne	Mrs. Tarrant
Dusty Maxwell	Newton
Charles McCaughan	Music-Hall Policeman
J. Lee Morgan	Music-Hall Official
Lee Doyle	Mr. Filer
Jane Manners	Maid
Janet Cicchese	Irish Washerwoman
Jon Van Ness	Henry Burrage
Scott Kradolfer	Tough Boy
June Mitchell	Party Guest

Technical Credits

James Ivory	Director
Michael S. Landes	Executive Producer
Ismail Merchant	Producer
Albert Schwartz	Executive Producer

Scene Index

Disc #1 -- The Bostonians
1. The Positon Of Women [11:21]
2. More Than Friends [8:58]
3. A Star In The Making [10:54]
4. Courting Verena [9:55]
5. Keeping Promises [7:44]
6. A Marriage Of Ideas [11:43]
7. Three's A Crowd [10:24]
8. Meant For Something Different [7:56]
9. An Unwelcome Guest [11:01]
10. The Difference An Hour Makes [10:55]
11. Gone Away [7:33]
12. The Cry Of All Women [11:10]
13. End Credits [2:22]

Menu

Disc #1 -- The Bostonians
   Play
   Chapters
   Setup
      English SDH Subtitles: On
      English SDH Subtitles: Off
   Extras
      The Making Of The Bostonians
      Conversations With The Filmmakers - The Bostonians
      Conversations From The Quad - James Ivory On The Bostonians
      The Bostonians Restoration Trailer
      The Bostonians Original Trailer

Editorial Reviews

Christopher Reeve was best known to audiences as the Man of Steel. It may be surprising, then, that his next most consistent engagement was appearing in Merchant-Ivory movies. Nearly a decade before his role in The Remains of the Day, Reeve starred in James Ivory's The Bostonians, Ruth Prawer Jhabvala's adaptation of the Henry James novel. There are several reasons The Bostonians is a lesser film in the Merchant-Ivory canon, but Reeve isn't one of them. Playing a detestable guardian of the patriarchy, who considers women better suited for motherhood than intellect and governance, Reeve nonetheless turns in a seductive performance, one that might undermine a would-be feminist in spite of herself. Such a role reminds viewers that just because Reeve was an icon, it didn't mean his range was limited to Superman. The film on the whole doesn't fare quite so well, despite tackling some important issues in the women's movement (suffrage), and hinting at others which, if given a name, would have been too risqué even for 1984 (the probable lesbianism of Vanessa Redgrave's Olive Chancellor). The Bostonians does generate a bunch of useful discourse, but other than that, it suffers from a lack of specificity. The action moves restlessly between locations without a plot-driven reason, spending relatively little time in Boston all told. And it's never quite possible to feel sympathy for the three main characters. Miss Chancellor's motives for her oratorically gifted protégé may be socially progressive, but even protecting Verena from Reeve's Basil Ransome feels like an oppressive act, designed to restrict her attentions to the movement -- and to keep her unattached. Meanwhile, young Verena (Madeleine Potter), vacillating between these two controlling influences, just seems weak and passively dishonest, a result of her lack of self possession.

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