The Age of Innocence (1993)

Featured Audience Ratings

• Dan S

  
  A well-acted, if occasionally boring and long-winded study of 19th century New York and how a young upper-class man (Daniel Day-Lewis) slowly begins to detach himself from his wife (Winona Ryder) in hopes of starting a relationship with her cousin (Michelle Pfeiffer). If not for… More
  A well-acted, if occasionally boring and long-winded study of 19th century New York and how a young upper-class man (Daniel Day-Lewis) slowly begins to detach himself from his wife (Winona Ryder) in hopes of starting a relationship with her cousin (Michelle Pfeiffer). If not for Day-Lewis's convincing, arresting turn as a man deeply troubled by what he should do and what he truly feels, this movie would probably be lost on me. Instead, it is quite good, in addition to Scorsese's firm direction which includes some original camera tricks to spice up the story every once in a while. It goes on a little too long, and sometimes you question if you should even be caring about these snobby upper-class people. However, the characters are given the proper color and depth they need, in addition to the plot being able to keep the story going in the second half, when you do not know what Day-Lewis's character will decide to do. The end result is a fine film, a minor entry into Scorsese's resume, and one of the few chances audiences around the world get to see the brilliance that is the actor Daniel Day-Lewis.

• Fernando Rafael Q

  
  Of course, this film doesn't allow for the usual Scorsese violence, but coming from him, I expected something a little more...intense. The look of this movie is amazing, with its gorgeous cinematography, it's as if you are watching a 2-hour long painting. But, apart from the… More
  Of course, this film doesn't allow for the usual Scorsese violence, but coming from him, I expected something a little more...intense. The look of this movie is amazing, with its gorgeous cinematography, it's as if you are watching a 2-hour long painting. But, apart from the aesthetic aspect, it also resembles a painting in the fact that nothing happens. Sadly, The Age of Innocence is terribly boring. I never thought I'd see Daniel Day-Lewis in such a plain role, he did what he could with what he was given. Winona Ryder was good in her own, puppy-like way. The film's best was Michelle Pfeiffer. Her performance was flawed, but she was the one who kept your interest alive. Loved the narrator. Martin Scorsese should stick to what he does best: blood.

• Alice S

  
  I'm okay with the movie because I liked the book. The direction is a bit odd. It seems like Marty Scorsese toned down his usual flashy cool to fit a staid period piece - the quick cuts to the food, the letters read to the camera.

• Chris W

  
  I'm normally not into these types of movies, and I'll admit that the main reason I saw this was because it was directed by Scorsese. After watching it, I found myself enjoying it, like sincerely, and not just because of who made it. This is a really interesting and engaging… More
  I'm normally not into these types of movies, and I'll admit that the main reason I saw this was because it was directed by Scorsese. After watching it, I found myself enjoying it, like sincerely, and not just because of who made it. This is a really interesting and engaging film about a love triangle, the hypocrisy of high society, and the torment that can be caused by the conflict between desire and social restrictions. This may seem like the oddity of Scorsese's filmography, not least because of the PG rating and the fact that this was his first period piece costume drama, but thematically and stylistically, this film fits in quite nicely with the resty of his work. Among other trademarks are the Madonna-Whore complex (and other elements of Catholicism), psychological turmoil, a constantly moving camera, nicely executed tracking shots and long takes, wonderful cinematography and rapid yet fluid editing, among other things. I found myself a tad bit bored here and there, but I was mostly into the story, I cared about the dilemma the characters face, and the wonderfully poetic way it all comes together at the end. I thought the art direction and costumes were fabulous, the music great, and the fact that Scorsese took a risk by doing something different quite admirable. Despite no physocal violence in this film, Scorsese once commented that he felt this was his most violent film. That sounds laughable, but I get what he means. The pyschological and emotional violence is quite stinging and devastating here. I wouldn't call it his most violent film, but then again, emotional and psychological pain can be far more dmamging than trauma caused by knives, guns, fists, or blunt instruments. Give this one a chance. I don't quite think it is the perfect masterpiece that Roger Ebert does, but it is nonetheless a fascinating and brilliant romantic drama.

• Conner R

  
  While it was a great attempt from a talented cast and director, the story was just not sufficient enough to bring together a worthwhile film. It is extremely confusing and overdone. Sometimes direct adaptions aren't always the best decisions, what works on paper doesn't… More
  While it was a great attempt from a talented cast and director, the story was just not sufficient enough to bring together a worthwhile film. It is extremely confusing and overdone. Sometimes direct adaptions aren't always the best decisions, what works on paper doesn't always come out so well on screen. However, Scorsese tried his best to make this into a work of art and he mostly did. You can at least bask in its visual perfection.

• Candy R

  
  Excellent period drama set in high society New York. Newland (Daniel) is a well-educated and wealthy lawyer who is engaged to May (Winona), but falls passionately in love with her cousin Countess Ellen Olenska (Michelle). He is torn between what is right and proper conduct and what… More
  Excellent period drama set in high society New York. Newland (Daniel) is a well-educated and wealthy lawyer who is engaged to May (Winona), but falls passionately in love with her cousin Countess Ellen Olenska (Michelle). He is torn between what is right and proper conduct and what his heart desires. Ellen is the talk of the town having left her husband in France. With no means of her own, she has little choice but to return to him, but will Newland stop her? The costumes, storyline and cast are great but the last scene is disappointing.

• Jennifer X

  
  Um, I wasn't expecting much because I don't even like Scorsese that much. It was a really boring story and I was really pissed at Daniel Day Lewis half the time. I get that it's supposed to be about the restrictions of society at the time but I still think he was being… More
  Um, I wasn't expecting much because I don't even like Scorsese that much. It was a really boring story and I was really pissed at Daniel Day Lewis half the time. I get that it's supposed to be about the restrictions of society at the time but I still think he was being an asshole nevertheless. I support Winona Ryder in this case 100%. At times I found myself turning to the technical side of things just because there was nothing else to do. It tries its hand at subtlety but Scorsese was never known for being subtle. It's a watchable film and it's got its good moments. I also don't think DDL has any chemistry with Michelle Pfeiffer.

• Mason W

  
  Age of Innocence is a good novel and film...both worthy to check out. The film starring a very strong cast; Michelle Pfeiffer, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Winona Ryder. The film centers on the high society of the 19th century NYC. A young bride to be (Ryder) along with her beloved soon… More
  Age of Innocence is a good novel and film...both worthy to check out. The film starring a very strong cast; Michelle Pfeiffer, Daniel Day-Lewis, and Winona Ryder. The film centers on the high society of the 19th century NYC. A young bride to be (Ryder) along with her beloved soon to be husband (Day-Lewis) are a perfect match. Enters the outcast (Pfeiffer) that just came back from Europe and obaining a unheard of and disasterous divorce. Things ignite betwen people...beuatiful costumes and well acted.

• Ken S

  
  Expertly crafted and endlessly boring

• Sarah G

  
  <a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q202/sarah88_uk/imagesyyyyy.jpg" border="0"alt="Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket"></a> Society scion… More
  <a href="http://photobucket.com" target="_blank"><img src="http://i137.photobucket.com/albums/q202/sarah88_uk/imagesyyyyy.jpg" border="0"alt="Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket"></a> Society scion Newland Archer is engaged to May Welland, but his well-ordered life is upset when he meets May's unconventional cousin, the Countess Olenska. At first, Newland becomes a defender of the Countess, whose separation from her abusive husband makes her a social outcast in the restrictive high society of late-19th Century New York, but he finds in her a companion spirit and they fall in love. Scorsese proves once again that he can direct anything of any genre, and it becomes brilliant. I admit that I do watch period drama and this is definatly up there with some of the best I've seen. Scorsese's direction with his famous tracking shots, montage editing and agressive camera movement really depicts the story well for me. Perhaps that's just become I'm a fan. Compared with Gangs of New York there's more story developement there and there's more of a sense of purpose for the films, which I found lacked in GONY. The Age of Innocence has more of Scorsese's directorial signitures in it, as I said before, Montage editing, Tracking shots and a character who wants to be accepted in sciety. That's way it's superior to GONY. The cast is top notch. Definatly one of the better casts in scorsese's movies. Winona Ryder, in her academey nominated role, performs to a high standard-one in which I don't think I've seen her like before. Michelle Pfeffer was unregnosible as her character, Countess Olenska, you really believe she's that character. Day-Lewis, in his first Scorsese movie was probably a little underated in the movie, perhaps overshadowed by Ryder. Also great to see fellow Brit actors; Johanthan Pryce, Richard. E Grant and Miriam Margolyes in an American film. Although Richard .E Grant had a pretty bad American accent in it, Pryce and Margolys were brilliant. What I loved about the film was how brilliantly it depicted New York life in the 1870's. We see Neland struggling to overcome his feelings for Countess Olenska and marry a woman he doesn't love at all. There we see how society at that time wouldn't agree with him with Olenska. This is brilliantly depicted by the narration, used many times in Scorsese's films. There we understand the characters far better than we would without narration. There is also one brilliant score, which is still in my head after watching it. Again this beautifully capture the spirit of that era. Excellent! Overall a brilliant period drama and one of Scorsese's best films. <b>Highly Recomended to all</b>

• Dann M

  
  The Age of Innocence is a dramatic period film that explores some interesting themes. From director Martin Scorsese, comes a tale of high society in New York during the 19th century and the trappings that went along with it. Scorsese assembles an impressive cast that includes Daniel… More
  The Age of Innocence is a dramatic period film that explores some interesting themes. From director Martin Scorsese, comes a tale of high society in New York during the 19th century and the trappings that went along with it. Scorsese assembles an impressive cast that includes Daniel Day-Lewis, Michelle Pfeiffer and Winona Ryder, and there's a good chemistry among the actors that helps the film to connect with the audience and bring them into the story. However, there are issues with the storytelling: it goes on for far too long and gets lost among the minutiae of high society. The Age of Innocence is an intriguing drama with some good performances, but it rambles a bit too much.

• Mark K

  
  I thought it was a well crafted film, with an all-star cast, and I thought it would be better than it was. I can't put my finger on it, but it felt rather flat to me, and it just didn't grab me. However, I can appreciate what they wanted to do with this film. It had noble… More
  I thought it was a well crafted film, with an all-star cast, and I thought it would be better than it was. I can't put my finger on it, but it felt rather flat to me, and it just didn't grab me. However, I can appreciate what they wanted to do with this film. It had noble aspirations, and Scorsese, as usual, paints a lush picture of life. Despite Daniel Day Lewis' talent, the characters didn't quite rise to the life depicted. Maybe it was the script, because it wasn't a lack of talent. Maybe I need to watch it again? Still a worthwhile film to watch for the craft and subtlety of the performances.

• Mike T

  
  From a directorial standpoint, this is a very solid piece of work. It's an eloquent, visually strong movie that flaunts Scorsese's trademark qualities. However, it is not among his strongest work by any means. For lack of a better term, this is a surprisingly dull movie. It… More
  From a directorial standpoint, this is a very solid piece of work. It's an eloquent, visually strong movie that flaunts Scorsese's trademark qualities. However, it is not among his strongest work by any means. For lack of a better term, this is a surprisingly dull movie. It has captivating moments and there are very interesting elements to the script, but it doesn't pull together as an exceedingly entertaining experience. Well-made, but at times it's difficult to sit through.

• Ivan D

  
  Once again, Scorsese leads us through places almost bound with secrecy, wrapped in customs, littered with hidden scandals, and the people that inhabits them whose mastery of conversations, socialization, and even dining were too great in its artificiality that they almost looked like… More
  Once again, Scorsese leads us through places almost bound with secrecy, wrapped in customs, littered with hidden scandals, and the people that inhabits them whose mastery of conversations, socialization, and even dining were too great in its artificiality that they almost looked like performance acts. No, it's not the Italian-flavored crimeland we're talking about here, but 19th century New York where high society dwells on everything material and excessive, where moral righteousness is not a code to follow but more of a trend to fashionably don. At first, I had doubts if Scorsese's known visual compositions really belong to such a type of film set in an era of restraint and conservatism. But with his combination of attention to details and an inclined exploratory viewpoint of the social class' amoral gutters amidst its elegant vanity, he used a distinct style(at times, darkening everything on screen but a smooth-edged circle to contain the main subjects, or even letting a character face the camera and speak of a potentially saddening letter with great joy and eagerness) to really fit the film's grasp of irony. Those who accuse Daniel Day-Lewis as a scenery-chewing hack will be utterly disproved in his performance in this film, using the fine attitudes of an obligatory gentleman to depict the numbered movements of an 1870's society male while maintaining his attachment with controlled subtlety. With this type of acting approach, Day-Lewis has able to internalize and show on screen his character Newland Archer's episodic implosions about his clamor for freeing himself from the bondage of his class' norms about love. Though "The Age of Innocence" had its moments of beautifying high society's excessive lifestyles, Martin Scorsese and Edith Wharton's novel(from which the film was adapted) has successfully portrayed an escapist love surrounded by eyes of the self-righteous ones, the impossibility of its fruition, and the beauty of its acceptance. Living the life of grandeur may be like lying in a bed of roses, but the occasional thorns sure do hurt.

• Brian R

  
  THE AGE OF INNOCENCE Scorsese painstakingly creates NYC 1870's so well, so real, and the camera movement feels like a ballerina sensually dancing in a world of wealthy NY society. THE AGE OF INNOCENCE might be slow for new beginners(even myself) but I couldn't help but be in… More
  THE AGE OF INNOCENCE Scorsese painstakingly creates NYC 1870's so well, so real, and the camera movement feels like a ballerina sensually dancing in a world of wealthy NY society. THE AGE OF INNOCENCE might be slow for new beginners(even myself) but I couldn't help but be in a trance...if there is a flaw I didn't like the narrator played by Joanne Woodward(she has a very boring voice) someone like hmm...oh idk Whoopi Goldberg, she would keep the viewers from falling asleep.

• Dimitris S

  
  Insightful might,Scorsese had guts and establishes his mark in his last great film so far with every bit of ink this word contains.Patience and ferocious looks,Daniel Day-Lewis grapples the screen,the authenticity of the era is more than luxurious and passionate,the substance of the… More
  Insightful might,Scorsese had guts and establishes his mark in his last great film so far with every bit of ink this word contains.Patience and ferocious looks,Daniel Day-Lewis grapples the screen,the authenticity of the era is more than luxurious and passionate,the substance of the book's material is simply perfect.Unlike many costume dramas of recent years,this just smacks their face!

• hawk l

  
  Beautifully acted, impeccable period romance from Martin Scorsese. Repression and sexual longing are the order of the day, but also dwells on the themes of sacrifice, and social and familial responsibility, as well as passion. Terrific cast and gorgeous production design, plus has a… More
  Beautifully acted, impeccable period romance from Martin Scorsese. Repression and sexual longing are the order of the day, but also dwells on the themes of sacrifice, and social and familial responsibility, as well as passion. Terrific cast and gorgeous production design, plus has a discernable depth.

• Marion R

  
  Suppose to be romantic and smoldering, but just feels boring and long

• John A

  
  'The Age of Innocence' isn't afraid or ashamed to be completely classical in almost every possible way. The film immerses itself in art and melody, symbolism and literature, and illustrates with startling, blatant truth coupled with a quiet poignancy how the society in… More
  'The Age of Innocence' isn't afraid or ashamed to be completely classical in almost every possible way. The film immerses itself in art and melody, symbolism and literature, and illustrates with startling, blatant truth coupled with a quiet poignancy how the society in 1880's New York restricted freedom beyond what we could begin to imagine. Daniel Day-Lewis is surprisingly on target as the modernist American gentleman, and Winona Ryder and Miriam Margolyes offer fanatastic support as wealthy socialites with plans of their own. The standout, however, is Michelle Pfeiffer's sensual portrayal of Countess Olenska; she exudes both menace and melancholy, but isn't afraid to manipulate where she deems necessary. While the film is told in a typically traditionalist manner, with a lyrical narration that is informative and absorbing - never irritating, it is the tocuhes of directorial flair from Scorsese that give the picture extra strokes of originality. The direction is almost pitch-perfect, the vast attention to detail reflective of the elegant costume and set-designs that were then so extravagant, and the slow pace lending the film a burning intensity that is never quite distinguished. The depth of the language and beautifully shot cinematography suck the audience into the tale of forbidden love in such an absorbing way it is almost as though we are watching an opera, or reading the novel itself; this is grand, sweeping film-making that provokes intrigue and genuine interest. You admire it for the sheer effort put into its making, but you enjoy the film for its dramatic, realistic handling of such a simplistic story, suffusing it with understated meaning and vibrant atmosphere.

• Keith M

  
  The art direction and the story make this a solid piece of film. Got a little winded in the middle, but a great ending.

Read all 20 featured audience ratings