Movie · 1987 · Drama, Romance · 2h 20m · R · English
Curator score: 7.8/10 (161.1K ratings)
A love story of unforgettable passion.
Overview
After his lover rejects him, Maurice attempts to come to terms with his sexuality within the restrictiveness of Edwardian society.
Ratings
Curator score: 7.8/10
IMDb: 7.6/10
Letterboxd: 3.88/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 82%
Metacritic: 75
TMDB: 7.6/10
Director
James Ivory
Production
Merchant Ivory Productions, Cinecom Pictures, Film Four International, Maurice Productions
Cast
James Wilby, Hugh Grant, Rupert Graves, Denholm Elliott, Simon Callow, Billie Whitelaw, Barry Foster, Judy Parfitt, Phoebe Nicholls, Patrick Godfrey, Mark Tandy, Ben Kingsley, Kitty Aldridge, Helena Michell, Catherine Rabett, Peter Eyre, Michael Jenn, Mark Payton, Orlando Wells, Maria Britneva
Where to watch
Philo
Curator Review
Verdict
A lush, emotionally precise Edwardian romance that treats queer longing with unusual tenderness and seriousness. It’s especially rewarding for viewers who like period drama, repressed desire, and James Ivory’s elegant, melancholy style.
Best for
fans of refined period dramas
viewers interested in queer cinema history
romantic tragedy enthusiasts
people who appreciate restrained, literary filmmaking
audiences drawn to class-conscious costume drama
Skip if
you want a fast-paced plot
you prefer explicit modern queer storytelling
you dislike repression-as-drama
you need a highly contemporary emotional style
Overview
Maurice is one of the great queer romances of the late 20th century, not because it is loud, but because it is so controlled. James Ivory frames desire as something lived through glances, silences, landscapes, and social codes, letting the film’s emotional pressure build with exquisite patience.
Worth noting
What makes it endure is the balance between ache and liberation. The film understands the damage done by Edwardian respectability, but it also finds warmth, wit, and a hard-won sense of possibility. The performances are especially strong in charting the differences between self-denial and self-acceptance.
Bottom line
It’s a film of interiors and exteriors: drawing rooms, fields, country estates, and the private weather of shame and longing. If you respond to romantic restraint, literary adaptation, and beautifully observed emotional awakening, this is essential viewing.
Top Letterboxd reviews
galpalkirk (5★) · 9999 likes
Maurice really went back to his ex’s house just to gloat about all the sex he’s having with his new boyfriend who would risk everything for him!!! Iconic!!!!
☮️ · 8836 likes
you can clearly see clives glow down after he out of nowhere decided to be straight
alice (4★) · 6822 likes
that close up of clive's beautiful face. the camera slowly pans out. you realise his head is leaning on someone's thigh. further out. a man's thigh. further, a hand runs through his perfect oxford haircut. maurice's hand, maurice's thigh. the sexy creak of the wicker chair. dare i say.... iconic?
liv (4★) · 6219 likes
It is absolutely CRIMINAL how good Hugh grant's hair is in the first half of this
haneen (3★) · 5476 likes
i am:
✖️ gay
✖️ a homosexual
✖️ attracted to men
✔️an unspeakable of the oscar wilde sort