--- title: "Howards End: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/howards-end/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/howards-end" critics_score: 83 critics_reviews: 10 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Howards End (1992): what the critics said Critics' score 83 from 10 reviews: 10 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics warmly recommend Howards End, with praise centred on Emma Thompson’s emotional precision and the strength of the ensemble, particularly Anthony Hopkins. The reviews admire the period detail, assured storytelling and intelligent handling of class and social connection. Several see the adaptation as evidence that traditional literary filmmaking can be both entertaining and searching, with the handsome settings allowing a troubling account of money and privilege to emerge. Reservations concern what is lost in adapting Forster. The AV Club and The New Yorker find that some complexity falls away, while Time Out objects to the screenplay’s length and reliance on black-outs. The spread is largely between enthusiasm and qualified approval, though Slant Magazine offers a sharper dissent: it finds the decorative style empty and the dialogue too explicit, while still valuing Thompson and Vanessa Redgrave. Even where critics disagree about the adaptation, the performances retain considerable support. ## Radio Times — Tom Hutchinson Rating 5/5. This elegant adaptation never hides grim insights into the upper middle classes while delivering perfect period detail and extraordinarily convincing portraits from Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson. It stands as one of the finest conversions of a novel to cinema. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-vu4fpa/howards-end/) ## Los Angeles Times — Kenneth Turan Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 15 April 1992. The critic urges surrender to the film's assured storytelling, remarkable acting, and rich period detail as a peak of traditional filmmaking. They single out the complex emotional depth achieved by the long-collaborating Merchant-Ivory-Jhabvala team and especially Emma Thompson's performance. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-04-15-ca-29-story.html) ## The Guardian — Derek Malcolm Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 30 April 1992. The critic praises the film as one of Merchant Ivory's best, highlighting the excellent performances, particularly by Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson, and its faithful adaptation of the novel's themes of class and connection. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_review/0,,530812,00.html) ## Empire — Angie Errigo Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. Merchant Ivory delivers a handsome, intelligent and witty adaptation with a perfect cast. Thompson is wonderful in this delightful, pacey period piece that stands as one of their most memorable films. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/howards-end-review/) ## Sight and Sound — Lizzie Francke Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). The film delivers a more troubling and rigorous inquest into a bygone era than usual Merchant Ivory adaptations. It highlights the grasping Wilcoxes as villains and gives moral weight to the Basts' perspective on class and modernity. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/howards-end-archive-review-troubling-forster-film-our-grey-times) ## The Independent — Laurence Earle Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 1 May 1993. Merchant-Ivory's third and most successful adaptation of Forster is a complex tale of class distinction in Edwardian England. Emma Thompson and Anthony Hopkins deliver standout performances in this story of social connections. [Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/video-2320484.html) ## The AV Club — Scott Tobias Rating B. 3 March 2010. The film earns praise for Thompson's magnificent central performance and graceful bursts of emotion but is faulted for gliding over the novel's complexity and rushing key relationships. The adaptation's patient unfolding leads to a devastating conclusion despite narrative sacrifices. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/howards-end-1798164400) ## The New Yorker — Terrence Rafferty Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 27 April 1992. The review calls the film a handsome, intelligent, and faithful dramatization that succeeds as storytelling thanks to strong performances, especially by Emma Thompson and Vanessa Redgrave. It praises the adaptation's skill but notes it misses some of Forster's deeper narrative strain and commentary. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1992/05/04/1992-05-04-074-tny-cards-000147417) ## Time Out — MS Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). The impeccable performances, led by Emma Thompson's seductive saintliness as Margaret, elevate the saga of inheritance, class clashes and tragedy. Ruth Prawer Jhabvala's overlong screenplay relies too heavily on black-outs to fit the novel's incidents. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/howards-end) ## Slant Magazine — Eric Henderson 2 November 2009. The film is seen as a luxurious but empty frame, with Merchant-Ivory's fussy style and declarative dialogue failing to capture subtleties. Thompson and Redgrave's intelligent performances are singled out as the main elements that guide viewers through the episodic narrative. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/howards-end/) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Jeff Menell 13 March 1992. The critic finds the film a sumptuous visual delight with rich texture and substance from start to finish. Thompson's compassionate and humorous performance as Margaret is singled out as the lifeblood of the picture alongside the ensemble and cinematography. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/howards-end-review-movie-1992-1281538/) ## The New York Times — Vincent Canby Rating Critic's Pick. 13 March 1992. The critic hails the Merchant-Ivory-Jhabvala team's adaptation as a richly textured triumph that outshines other attempts at literary adaptations. They single out the film's entertaining depth and the team's consistent excellence with Forster material. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1992/03/13/movies/review-film-howards-end-a-drawing-room-war-with-edwardian-grace.html) ## Collider — Andre Dellamorte Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 27 October 2009. The critic calls the film a masterful work that creates sympathy and urgency in its characters' plights, praising its brisk pacing, beautiful cinematography, strong performances (especially Emma Thompson and Anthony Hopkins), and its status as a crown jewel of Merchant-Ivory's career. [Read the review](https://collider.com/howards-end-criterion-blu-ray-review/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/howards-end.md