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Washington Square
Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment // PG // September 3, 2002
List Price: $9.99 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
The novels and stories of Henry James, the classic novelist of turn-of-the-century United States, have proved to be a rich vein of material for filmmakers to mine; films have been made of his work from the 1940s to the present, and the 1997 production of Washington Square was the latest of several adaptations of that novel. I am a definite admirer of period films, but after having met with mixed results with regard to adaptations of James' novels, most notably the dreadful 1996 Portrait of a Lady, I wasn't sure what to expect from Washington Square. It was a delightful surprise, then, to find that Washington Square did not just succeed as a film, but excelled.
Like other Henry James stories, Washington Square is a tightly-contained tale of emotional relationships and their sometimes unbearably high costs. Catherine Sloper (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is the only child of the wealthy Dr. Austin Sloper (Albert Finney): shy and awkward, lacking in both beauty and social graces, she seems destined to become an old maid like her aunt Lavinia (Maggie Smith). That is, until she meets a charming young man named Morris Townsend (Ben Chaplin) who seems to be her perfect match... assuming that he's interested in her, and not her fortune.
From the very beginning, the characters are very well introduced: we know exactly who are the important characters, and who are the secondary ones. Even more importantly, the film manages to get us interested in the important characters immediately, revealing them as complex, conflicted, and interesting human beings whom we begin to care about as soon as we meet them.
It is indeed crucial for a film like Washington Square that we do care about its characters, for the entire central point of the film is the dilemma that faces the protagonist: to marry her handsome, charming, and penniless suitor, and be disinherited, or to obey her father's wishes and continue her life of wealth and leisure as before. It's not a simple equation, and Washington Square deepens it further by making all the characters fully three-dimensional, with greater depths than readily meet the eye. Is Catherine's father really looking out for her best interests, or is he swayed by his own pride and self-image? Is Morris really in love with Catherine, or is he after her money? Is Lavinia the innocent old-maid aunt that she appears, or is there a dangerous undercurrent? Is Catherine, even, as naive as she seems? This degree of complexity is a substantial load for the cast to carry, but again Washington Square shines in the excellent performances of its cast, all of whom bring their characters to life as truly real people.
The beauty of Washington Square is that these characterizations, with their corresponding questions, are unfolded bit by bit over the course of the film, so that we are always fascinated by what's going on and eager to see what it means. The structure of the film encourages viewers to theorize about the intentions and motivations of the characters, by dropping hints and possibilities about the characters. Some are important revelations, others are red herrings; in any case the manner in which events come to pass is both wholly satisfying and remarkably surprising. I had some theories about what might happen (and some thoughts on what I hoped would happen), but all the way up to the end of the film, I did not know how things would really turn out. In other words, Washington Square sets up its development and conclusion perfectly, without telegraphing the manner in which the story would unfold.
Another subtle bit of polish in Washington Square is its excellent handling of cues for the passing of time. A number of years go by over the course of the film, and each transition is made completely clear to the viewer sometimes with only a single well-chosen image, like the fade-out / fade-in of Catherine as a little girl looking out the window of her room with Catherine as a young lady in the same pose, and sometimes with a sentence or two of well-chosen dialogue. There are no captions saying "eight years later" or "two months later," and there's no need for them, since the essential information is smoothly and naturally woven into the story itself.
The tone and general ambiance of director Agnieszka Holland's version of Washington Square is different from most period pieces I've seen, and certainly different from other adaptations of Henry James novels I've seen. To begin with, the camera work is looser, more mobile, more inclined to go for moving shots or changes of angle, than the fairly stationary cinematography that's the norm in a lot of period pieces. Visually, this leads to a modern and lively feel to the film before even starting to consider other aspects of the production.
The tone of the film is also considerably lighter than in any of the adaptations I've seen of James' novels, or of Edith Wharton's either (another turn-of-the-century novelist focusing on social interactions in the upper classes). This lighter tone adds a considerable breath of fresh air to Washington Square, reminding us that people are people: simply because someone is wearing an enormous fancy dress with layers upon layers of petticoats and ruffles doesn't automatically bestow a serious and aristocratic air upon that person. Washington Square takes a breather from the focus on witty repartee that is the highlight of many "social intrigue" films, and allows the characters to be ordinary people: sometimes witty, sometimes clumsy, sometimes gossipy or overexcited or at a loss for words.
To be sure, Washington Square isn't quite perfect. There are a few instances, mostly at the beginning of the film, where the light tone is overdone slightly, with some comic instances of Catherine's clumsiness being taken to an extreme. Fortunately, however, the film soon settles down to a sustainable tone, with the serious situation of Catherine and Morris enlivened, but not overwhelmed, by the occasional humorous touch.
Video
The one disappointment in Washington Square is that its transfer is non-anamorphic. It is, however, presented in its original widescreen aspect ratio of 1.85:1, and I must say that overall, Washington Square does have one of the best non-anamorphic transfers I've seen in a while. A few flaws do pop up now and then in the print, but it's almost completely free of noise and edge enhancement, making for a clean and detailed image. Colors are excellent: bright and vibrant in sunlight, rich and warm in lamplight, and in general simply very attractive. Hand in hand with the good color balance comes good contrast: the picture handles extremes of light and dark quite well, preserving detail even in shadowy scenes.
Audio
Washington Square also has one of the better Dolby 2.0 soundtracks that I've heard, providing the film with a more satisfying audio experience than many 5.1 tracks do. As a mainly conversational film, the extra surround channels aren't really missed, and the all-important dialogue is always clean and clear. Music also sounds full and rich, and plays an important role in several scenes.
Extras
Menus are straightforward and easy to navigate, but there are no special features to be had.
Final thoughts
I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of Washington Square from start to finish. Those viewers who, like me, particularly enjoy period films will want to jump on this DVD, and on the whole, I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well-crafted character drama. Especially considering the low MSRP, it is a sure bet for a blind buy.
Like other Henry James stories, Washington Square is a tightly-contained tale of emotional relationships and their sometimes unbearably high costs. Catherine Sloper (Jennifer Jason Leigh) is the only child of the wealthy Dr. Austin Sloper (Albert Finney): shy and awkward, lacking in both beauty and social graces, she seems destined to become an old maid like her aunt Lavinia (Maggie Smith). That is, until she meets a charming young man named Morris Townsend (Ben Chaplin) who seems to be her perfect match... assuming that he's interested in her, and not her fortune.
From the very beginning, the characters are very well introduced: we know exactly who are the important characters, and who are the secondary ones. Even more importantly, the film manages to get us interested in the important characters immediately, revealing them as complex, conflicted, and interesting human beings whom we begin to care about as soon as we meet them.
It is indeed crucial for a film like Washington Square that we do care about its characters, for the entire central point of the film is the dilemma that faces the protagonist: to marry her handsome, charming, and penniless suitor, and be disinherited, or to obey her father's wishes and continue her life of wealth and leisure as before. It's not a simple equation, and Washington Square deepens it further by making all the characters fully three-dimensional, with greater depths than readily meet the eye. Is Catherine's father really looking out for her best interests, or is he swayed by his own pride and self-image? Is Morris really in love with Catherine, or is he after her money? Is Lavinia the innocent old-maid aunt that she appears, or is there a dangerous undercurrent? Is Catherine, even, as naive as she seems? This degree of complexity is a substantial load for the cast to carry, but again Washington Square shines in the excellent performances of its cast, all of whom bring their characters to life as truly real people.
The beauty of Washington Square is that these characterizations, with their corresponding questions, are unfolded bit by bit over the course of the film, so that we are always fascinated by what's going on and eager to see what it means. The structure of the film encourages viewers to theorize about the intentions and motivations of the characters, by dropping hints and possibilities about the characters. Some are important revelations, others are red herrings; in any case the manner in which events come to pass is both wholly satisfying and remarkably surprising. I had some theories about what might happen (and some thoughts on what I hoped would happen), but all the way up to the end of the film, I did not know how things would really turn out. In other words, Washington Square sets up its development and conclusion perfectly, without telegraphing the manner in which the story would unfold.
Another subtle bit of polish in Washington Square is its excellent handling of cues for the passing of time. A number of years go by over the course of the film, and each transition is made completely clear to the viewer sometimes with only a single well-chosen image, like the fade-out / fade-in of Catherine as a little girl looking out the window of her room with Catherine as a young lady in the same pose, and sometimes with a sentence or two of well-chosen dialogue. There are no captions saying "eight years later" or "two months later," and there's no need for them, since the essential information is smoothly and naturally woven into the story itself.
The tone and general ambiance of director Agnieszka Holland's version of Washington Square is different from most period pieces I've seen, and certainly different from other adaptations of Henry James novels I've seen. To begin with, the camera work is looser, more mobile, more inclined to go for moving shots or changes of angle, than the fairly stationary cinematography that's the norm in a lot of period pieces. Visually, this leads to a modern and lively feel to the film before even starting to consider other aspects of the production.
The tone of the film is also considerably lighter than in any of the adaptations I've seen of James' novels, or of Edith Wharton's either (another turn-of-the-century novelist focusing on social interactions in the upper classes). This lighter tone adds a considerable breath of fresh air to Washington Square, reminding us that people are people: simply because someone is wearing an enormous fancy dress with layers upon layers of petticoats and ruffles doesn't automatically bestow a serious and aristocratic air upon that person. Washington Square takes a breather from the focus on witty repartee that is the highlight of many "social intrigue" films, and allows the characters to be ordinary people: sometimes witty, sometimes clumsy, sometimes gossipy or overexcited or at a loss for words.
To be sure, Washington Square isn't quite perfect. There are a few instances, mostly at the beginning of the film, where the light tone is overdone slightly, with some comic instances of Catherine's clumsiness being taken to an extreme. Fortunately, however, the film soon settles down to a sustainable tone, with the serious situation of Catherine and Morris enlivened, but not overwhelmed, by the occasional humorous touch.
Video
The one disappointment in Washington Square is that its transfer is non-anamorphic. It is, however, presented in its original widescreen aspect ratio of 1.85:1, and I must say that overall, Washington Square does have one of the best non-anamorphic transfers I've seen in a while. A few flaws do pop up now and then in the print, but it's almost completely free of noise and edge enhancement, making for a clean and detailed image. Colors are excellent: bright and vibrant in sunlight, rich and warm in lamplight, and in general simply very attractive. Hand in hand with the good color balance comes good contrast: the picture handles extremes of light and dark quite well, preserving detail even in shadowy scenes.
Audio
Washington Square also has one of the better Dolby 2.0 soundtracks that I've heard, providing the film with a more satisfying audio experience than many 5.1 tracks do. As a mainly conversational film, the extra surround channels aren't really missed, and the all-important dialogue is always clean and clear. Music also sounds full and rich, and plays an important role in several scenes.
Extras
Menus are straightforward and easy to navigate, but there are no special features to be had.
Final thoughts
I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of Washington Square from start to finish. Those viewers who, like me, particularly enjoy period films will want to jump on this DVD, and on the whole, I would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys a well-crafted character drama. Especially considering the low MSRP, it is a sure bet for a blind buy.
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