Ethan Frome

Acting was great and also i loved the snowy area in the movie. While i was reading the book i also dreamed the Starkfield like in the movie. So it was successful.

The photography is one of the best aspects of the film. The depressing snow and freezing temperature really come across well. The acting is good. In particular, Joan Allen shines as the sickly wife and Liam Neeson is very sympathetic as Ethan. The essential weaknesses of plot derive more from the novella than the director; the theme is not that relevant for modern audiences and some of the criticism levelled against it is undeserved. The plot is faithful to the original although one character is changed from an engineer to a clergyman. The poverty of the town is very well illustrated and gives an alternative view to some Victorian set films.

Ethan Frome is one of those stories that is meant to be uncomfortable and unattractive, so if you were put off by either the novel or the movie, it just shows that they succeeded in what they set out to do. Personally, I am slightly ashamed to admit that the novel bored me nearly to tears, but this film version not only refreshed the story in my memory but also breathed a much needed bit of life into the literary version, which is something that I rarely say about a film version of a novel. Before I go on, however, I would like to point out that I realize how much is lost in the transition from novel to film, in that the film is not able to capture Wharton's writing style and there are scenes that are taken out and artistic liberties taken with the material, but as far as a structured story, this is a worthwhile adaptation.

Liam Neeson brilliantly portrays the fated Ethan Frome, a character who is in an unhappy marriage to a wife who is more interested in the social status achieved by being married than in Ethan as a person. Zeena, his wife (played by Joan Allen), is a woman who has become embittered by her life as the wife of a poor man (as Ethan describes her at one point) and the fact that any scrap of love or passion has leaked completely out of her marriage, which was pretty dry to begin with. When Mattie (Patricia Arquette) comes to live with them, things begin to fall apart much more seriously than the emotional way in which the marriage between Ethan and Zeena has long since crumbled.

There are a lot of religious and social undertones throughout the film, as we struggle with Ethan and Mattie, watching them desperately falling in love with each other but each as helpless to do anything about it as the other. Ethan can't leave Zeena for religious reasons, and social reasons as well, since he will be disrespected by the community if he does that (which is a little strange, since you would think there would be even more disapproval from the fact that Ethan and Zeena are distant cousins). And besides that, Ethan has moral reasons of his own for not wanting to leave Zeena, feeling that he has an obligation to her that prevents him from leaving her alone and helpless. This obligation is, of course, derived mainly from Zeena having put so much effort into caring for Ethan's mother before she passed away, an extended act of charity of which she constantly reminds him.

Patricia Arquette delivers a fine performance in the role as Mattie Silver, although her iconography since making this film has completely changed the way she is seen in movies and makes her role as Mattie slightly less believable. But Liam Neeson is the actor here who deserves the most recognition, I can't even imagine someone portraying Ethan Frome more accurately as far as the way he was described in the book than what Neeson did in this film. If you're studying this book in school, it would probably be a good idea to just go ahead and read the book, because this movie is not going to inform you enough to be able to pass a test on the novel, but it certainly works as far as entertainment or as a way to complement the book.

When Richard Nelson set out to adapt Edith Wharton's classic novel Ethan Frome to the silver screen, he could have never imaged that he would surpass the novel in quality. Marvelous casting and cinematography, as well as a befitting musical score by Rachel Portman, create the perfect audio/visual setting for an American classic.

Ethan Frome is the story of a man broken by his illicit love for his wife's housekeeper cousin. Starting from the present, the story flashes back to many years earlier before the accident that crippled Ethan. His wife Zeena becomes sick and sends for her cousin Mattie to take care of her. Ethan and Mattie fall deeply in love while Zeena becomes sicker and sicker.

While staying largely true to the novel, Richard Nelson makes changes to the story that perhaps Edith Wharton should have considered when writing her tragedy. The identity of the character investigating into Ethan's past has been altered from an engineer to a preacher, a more sensible profession in the context of the story. The depth of Ethan's relationship with Mattie also goes much deeper then in the novel. While perhaps this change could be criticized, it works better for the modern audience in understanding events to come. One of these events, an attempted suicide by Ethan's lover Mattie, was absent from the book yet again helps the viewing audience to feel the intense emotions of the movie. Well-chosen deletions from the book also help pacing while not infringing on its essence.

Perhaps the greatest attribute of "Ethan Frome" is its high-quality acting. Liam Neeson, staring as Ethan Frome, delivers an astounding performance. Perfecting both his character's physical ailment and emotional turmoil, he communicates the part as though it was written for him. Patricia Arquette equalizes Neeson's performance as Ethan's forbidden love Mattie Silver. There are several scenes in which dialogue is not needed to understand what Arquette's character is feeling. Lastly, Joan Allen does a phenomenal job in portraying Ethan's sickly wife Zeena. Though not as antagonistic as in the novel, she none-the-less conveys a meaningful performance.

What gives the movie version of Ethan Frome the edge over its book counterpart is the visual experience and the haunting soundtrack. The camera truly captures the melancholy of the land. There is not a moment in which the atmosphere of the setting does not match the emotional performance of the actors. Rachel Portman also composes a recurrent theme that portrays the spirit of the novel. The music, along with the camera work, help to set the kind of mood that words cannot in this instance. "Ethan Frome" wonderfully tells the story that Edith Wharton meant to in her novel. Outstanding acting and beautiful camera work make "Ethan Frome" a deeply moving film. Those who read the book will be mystified by the superiority of the movie over the novel. Those just interested in a heartfelt tale of forbidden love will not be disappointed either. Though it runs just over an hour-and-a-half, it is paced well and does not rush. As a whole, "Ethan Frome" is highly recommended.

I watched this movie yesterday night. It made me cry! Then I dreamed of it at night, and when I woke up I still had a melancholy feeling in my stomach and a sweet pain in my heart. Very few movies or novels affect me this strongly nowadays!

The depiction is bleak but romantic, tender, and very, very fine. The actors are all very good in their parts. This is one of those love stories that make you take the side of the adulterous couple, however much you are against such behaviour in ordinary cases. Mutual love can be so hard to find, and when you find it but cannot have it because of circumstances in the world around, you "never want to leave this hill"...