Cheap Washington Square (DVD) (Jennifer Jason Leigh, Albert Finney) (Agnieszka Holland) Price

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Customer Reviews of Washington Square

This movie closely follows Henry James' novel of the same name. Albert Finney plays a wealthy doctor, Austin Sloper, whose wife died giving birth to their daughter, Katherine, an only child raised by the imposing Doctor Sloper with the assistance of the Katherine's maternal, but silly and vapid Aunt Lavinia, beautifully played by Maggie Smith.

Katherine, a shy and clumsy child, desperately wanting, but lacking, affection from her imperious and distant father, grows up to be a plain faced, graceless, and awkward, young woman. As played by Jennifer Jason Leigh, she is a caricature rather than a fully fleshed character. Her portrayal of Katherine shows her lack of skill as an actress, especially when compared to the finely nuanced performances given by the other actors.

When this clumsy, plain jane is wooed by the dashing, but penniless young hunk, Morris Townsend, she falls hard and wants desperately to marry him. Silly Aunt Lavinia encourages the romance and aids and abets the lovers, curiously fulfilling her own romantic fantasies, while assisting her niece in fulfilling hers. Her father, however, pegs the handsome Mr. Townsend as a fortune hunter, because, he reasons, why else would Mr. Townsend want to marry his graceless lump of a daughter?

Needless to say, what follows is the cat and mouse game Dr. Sloper and Townsend play with each other, as well as with Katherine. Father threatens to disinherit daughter, and daughter swears she will marry suitor, despite father's threats. Suitor equivocates on the issue of whether disinheritance will cool his affections for Katherine. Does he do so out of love for Katherine or self interest? Suffice to say, while Katherine ends up finally getting some backbone in the end, one must ask who is the the ultimate victor in this drama. In my book, Father wins hands down and has the last laugh from the grave.

All in all, this is a handsome and, for the most part, well acted period piece that will be enjoyed by those who love this genre of film.

excellent period piece
This is an excellent period piece set in New York based on a short story by Henry James, and dated,film critic Roger Ebert claims, from before the Civil War. Jennifer Jason Leigh is an attractive blonde actress (see also her performance in the Russian film "The Quickie") but here she plays an heiress and is rendered somewhat less attractive it would appear by the oppressive dictatorial regime of her doctor father, who vehemently opposes her liaison with "ne'er-do-well" businessman Morris Townsend. She is attractive enough to attract him, or is it just her money he's after? Her father, as Townsend points out, would "oppose a courtship (of her) by the pope." So this is basically a story of unrequited love. But while it may be exceedingly painful for her, it is still fun to watch. She is totally devoted to her father, from her birth to his death, so this is an unfathomable dilemma for her. Some of the best scenes in the movie are the musical scenes at the piano, both with Morris and with various children. Maggie Smith plays a household helper who attempts to aid and abet her relationship with Morris. There are also some colorful scenes in Europe, where her father takes her in an unsuccessful attempt to make her forget Morris.

Very Dissapointed
Having read the novel "Washington Square" and seen the wonderful film adaption, "The Heiress", I was so dissapointed in this adaption. The acting leaves a lot to be desired. I feel that when something is good, you should leave it alone, and obviously the producers of this adaption haven't learned that. If you have read "Washington Square" or seen "The Heiress" I think you will dissapointed as well.