The Movie

The phrase "A Merchant-Ivory Production" evokes images of handsomely mounted, meticulously photographed, and exquisitely detailed period piece motion pictures. Director James Ivory and producer Ismail Merchant, along with screenwriter Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, are collectively responsible for some of the most renowned "masterpiece theater"-like dramas of the last several decades, including The Europeans, A Room With A View, The Bostonians, Howards End, and The Remains of the Day. Depending upon your particular point-of-view, the concept of a Merchant-Ivory film can be either a hallmark of high quality, intelligently scripted period dramas, or the signature of stuffy, overproduced, and thoroughly lifeless productions, whose slow pace and haughty remoteness represent the absolute epitome of ennui in filmmaking.

Your intrepid reviewer, who loves to throw the word "ennui" around like Benzedrine at an interstate rest-stop restroom, would love to make a sweeping comment about the entire Merchant-Ivory oeuvre. But I can't; I've avoided them like asbestos until now, and their 1981 film Quartet represents my initial descent into their body of work.

Quartet, based on the semi-autobiographical novel by Jean Rhys, is set in Paris of the 1920s, and is centered on the character of Marya Zelli (Isabelle Adjani), a young ingénue whose carefree Parisian existence is shattered when her husband Stephan (Anthony Higgins), is suddenly imprisoned for art theft. Bereft of money and lacking any ability to work on her own, she is taken in by Lois and H.J. Heidler (Maggie Smith and Alan Bates), a British couple whose unorthodox and apparently open marriage is seemingly acceptable to both parties, as long as "appearances are kept up." Lois frowns upon Marya visiting her husband in prison – it simply isn't "proper", you see. H.J. is smitten with Marya, inviting her into his household simply to further his own sexual gratification, right under his wife's accepting (if not entirely approving) nose.

For Marya, the situation is one entirely of survival. She floats about evening after evening, sampling the Parisian nightlife, dabbling in pornography here and auditioning for theatrical talents there, all the while maintaining her position as H.J.'s mistress. The Heidlers represent the "open-minded", freethinking contemporary couple whose attitudes towards love and fidelity necessitate more convincing for themselves than perhaps for others, and the incarcerated Stephan seemingly wants his wife to do nothing else but to survive until his release from jail.

The main problem I have with Quartet is that, as the central protagonist of the tale, Marya offers little in terms of presenting a compelling character. She is a free spirit without the energy, a Bohemian without the conviction, and a flapper without the force of personality. She does not act, but is constantly acted upon, and her lifelessness throughout the picture adds a measure of emotional separation between her and the viewer. Isabelle Adjani is effective and engaging in the role, but her role is so painfully understated and distant that the audience finds little with which they can endear themselves to her. I found myself more engaged by the Heidlers; Maggie Smith, as usual, is her usual magnetic presence, delivering up a woman who is constantly struggling to convince herself with her own cynicism. Her performance is mannered and complex, and she is eminently believable as the woman who is both suffering and looking out for the interests of her own husband's mistress.

Quartet is also very slow, which is both a boon and a hindrance for the film. Sometimes the movie simply meanders for scenes on end, and at other times the understated direction benefits many quieter, introspective scenes. However, what is lacking is a compelling story that captivates the viewer, an overall thrust that elevates Quartet above being simply a few intriguing parts in a generally somber and shiftless whole. Memorable drama thrives on depth and conflict, and Quartet provides bits and pieces of individual elements that never coalesce into something that provides for engaging dramatic weight.

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