James Ivory’s 1985 adaptation of A Room with a View by E. M. Foster [1908] is in one sense a turning point in psychological film drama. The film tells the story of two wealthy English women, Lucy Honeychurch (Helena Bonham Carter) and her older cousin, Charlotte, who journey to Italy visiting Florence.
On arrival in Florence, the two women don’t find the room they had reserved in hotel with a view over the Ponte Vecchio. They don’t hide their disappointment, but agree to swap their rooms with those of Mr. Emerson ( Julian Sachs), and his son George, which have a beautiful view over the Arno. While slowly walking along the Piazza della Signoria, Lucy overhears a discussion terminated in a duel between two local young men, one of whom had been stabbed several times. Lucy faints at the sight of blood, but she is rescued by George, who brings her back to the hotel, swearing to her that no one would have known what happened that day.
A few days later, after taking a trip around the countryside, George, a sensitive and intelligent young man, whose education was also rather unconventional, kisses her passionately. Charlotte learns it , and forces Lucy (who is officially engaged to Cecil in England) to leave Florence for fear of a scandal.
After Lucy went back to England, she accepts Cecil’s marriage proposal, but, having met George again, she realizes that she loves him and breaks off her engagement to Cecil. The story ends happily, with the marriage of the two lovers. They later wished to return to Florence for their honeymoon, staying in the same hotel where they met in unusual circumstances and in the same room with a view over the Ponte Vecchio.
Despite Lucy Honeychurch had to return to England quickly, she remained deeply marked by her first journey to Florence, and, once back at home, she was not the same woman. James Ivory’s adaptation seems closely linked to A Doll’s House [1879] by Henrik Ibsen, by reiterating the theme of women’s empowerment. And like C. Margaret Hall said, “Being open to the possibility of change is a necessary prerequisite for this basic change to become possible.” (C. Margaret Hall, Women and Empowerment: Strategies for Increasing Autonomy, London & New York, 2010).
