Starring: Anna Massey, Denholm Elliott, Patricia Hodge, Julia McKenzie, Googie Withers

Directed by: Giles Foster

BBC TV adaptation of the award-winning novel by Anita Brookner, which vividly brings to life the characters and atmosphere of the elegant Hotel Du Lac. It is a production of wit, charm, and beautifully observed detail filmed amid the mountains and lakes of Switzerland.

a viewer's comments:
Summary: A perfectly pitched film of loneliness and failed escape

It's a while since I saw it, but this fine film demands someone's comment. Edith Hope (Massey) attempts exile from a failing affair, and from her loneliness, in that quintessential place of exile, a Swiss lakeside hotel. But the other residents, ridiculous and sad, only compound her isolation, revealing the emptiness of disengagement. Flashbacks to her affair in London have a colour and vibrancy that startle in their contrast with Hope's melancholy quiet in Switzerland. Hope must return, without hope, and face the reality of her life in England, no matter how painful. The acting is immaculate: Massey plain and still, passion hidden deep within her; Elliott in a typical role of wise counsel; Julia McKenzie as the absurd lubricious vulgarian, they and the rest of the cast all deliver perfectly pitched performances. Quiet and introverted, accurately reflecting Anita Brookner's novel, this is a very English film and about as good as an English film gets.

Cast overview, first billed only:
Anna Massey .... Edith Hope
Denholm Elliott .... Philip Neville
Googie Withers .... Mrs. Pusey
Julia McKenzie .... Jennifer Pusey
Patricia Hodge .... Monica
Irene Handl .... Madame de Bonneuil
Barry Foster .... David Simmonds
Anne Firbank .... Penelope Milne
Geoffrey Chater .... Harold Webb
Jeffrey Wickham .... Geoffrey Long
Maurice Travail .... Hotel Proprietor
Jean-Marc Barr .... Alain
Patsy Byrne .... Mrs. Dempster
Andree Evans .... Hostess
Colette Gleeson .... Priscilla

Country: UK
Language: English
Color: Color
Duration: 75 mins