Search - The Golden Bowl on DVD

MPAA Rating: R Content Advisory: Adult Situations, Suitable for Children Movie Release: 2000 DVD Release: 11/06/2001 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Audio Tracks: English, French Subtitles: English, Spanish SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 2 hrs 11 mins Studio: Lions Gate Members Wishing: 10 Genres: Drama, Romance, Romantic Drama, Period Film

The distinguished director/producer/writer team of James Ivory, Ismail Merchant, and Ruth Prawer Jhabvala returns to the works of 19th century novelist Henry James in this adaptation of his tale of love and treachery. Wealthy American art collector Adam Verver (Nick Nolte) is traveling Europe with his daughter Maggie (Kate Beckinsale) following the death of his wife. In their travels, Adam and Maggie encounter Mrs. Assingham (Anjelica Huston), an American socialite who enjoys playing matchmaker, whether or not her subjects are interested. She introduces Maggie to Prince Amerigo (Jeremy Northam), a handsome but penniless member of Italian royalty, and after a bit of prodding, they announce their intention to marry. Mrs. Assingham also pushes Adam into a relationship with Charlotte (Uma Thurman), a close friend of Maggie, and they too decide to wed. However, no one else knows that Amerigo and Charlotte were once lovers, who broke off their relationship because he couldn't marry a commoner with no money. Their passion is eventually too strong to resist, and they embark on an adulterous affair, which becomes even more dangerous when Mrs. Assingham learns of it. The Golden Bowl was Merchant/Ivory/Jhabvala's third film based on a James novel, following The Europeans (1979) and The Bostonians (1984). ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Uma Thurman - Charlotte Stant
Jeremy Northam - Prince Amerigo
Kate Beckinsale - Maggie Verver
Nick Nolte - Adam Verver
Anjelica Huston - Fanny Assingham

Nick Nolte, Kate Beckinsale, and Uma Thurman star in the dramatic Merchant/Ivory production The Golden Bowl. Lion's Gate has done an only passable job on this 2.35:1 non-anamorphic transfer. The picture often sports a harsh amount of edge enhancement, as well as a lack of sharpness and texture in the images. The color schemes and black levels all look evenly rendered, though lack some of the detail that should be present on a recent DVD release. The audio is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 in English, though since this is a dialogue-driven drama, it's not surprising to find the bulk of this soundtrack limited to the front speakers only. All aspects of the dialogue, effects, and music are all free of any distortion or hiss. Also included on this disc is a Dolby 2.0 soundtrack as well as English and Spanish subtitles. The only extra feature available on this disc is a theatrical trailer for the film, disappointing those who heard the rumors that there would be a "production commentary" originally available on this release. ~ Patrick Naugle, All Movie Guide