Most critics admire it, and the admiration settles on the same things: David Lean’s unhurried, orderly direction, the scale and finish of the production, and a cast that draws praise almost everywhere. Judy Davis as Adela Quested and Peggy Ashcroft are the names that recur, with Victor Banerjee’s Aziz close behind. The photography of the Indian settings is singled out repeatedly, as is the film’s closeness to Forster’s book and its eye for the small cruelties of the British officials.
The reservations gather around pace and temperature. Several reviews find it languorous, and one argues the narrative loses its footing after the courtroom scenes. Time Out thinks Lean softens the novel’s attack on empire, and Empire, the one clear dissenter, finds the whole thing remote and unmoving despite its gloss, crediting only Ashcroft with giving it a heart. The spread is wide, from full marks to plain disappointment.