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Alan Bates, Maggie Smith, Isabelle Adjani, Anthony Higgins, Daniel Chatto ... see more see more... , Pierre Clémenti , Suzanne Flon , Sheila Gish , Daniel Mesguich , Jeffrey Kime , Caroline Loeb , Serge Marquand , Armelia McQueen , Bernice Stegers , Virginie Thévenet , Humbert Balsan , Sebastien Floche , Annie Noel , Michel Such , Romain Bremond , Paulita Sedgwick , Josine Comellas , Francois Viaur

No relation to the 1949 Somerset Maugham "omnibus" film of the same name, 1981's Quartet is based on the roman a clef by Jean Rhys. Though the names are changed, it is clearly the story of Rhys' roman... read more read more...ce with Ford Maddox Ford in 1920s Paris. The titular quartet consists of novelist Isabelle Adjani, her Polish husband Anthony Higgins, wealthy philanderer Alan Bates and Bates' artist wife Maggie Smith. Though she's been indulgent of Higgins's past indiscretions, Smith isn't keen on her husband carrying on an affair with Adjani under their own roof. Meanwhile, Higgins sits in prison, jailed for his various petty thefts. Once Higgins is released, he learns about the Bates-Adjani-Smith contretemps. When the dust settles, it is Adjani who suffers the most. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

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32% liked it

570 ratings

R, 1 hr. 40 min.

Directed by: James Ivory

Release Date: October 25, 1981

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DVD Release Date: February 24, 2004

Stats: 33 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (33)

  • gator681
    March 5, 2008
    gator681
    [font=Century Gothic]In "Quartet," it is Paris, 1927, and Marya's(Isabelle Adjani) husband, Stephan(Anthony Higgins), an art dealer, has just been sentenced to a year of jail and expulsion from France for theft, leaving her with no visible means of support.(Marya had once tried t... read moreo be a showgirl but it did not work out.) A wealthy couple of English art patrons, Lois(Maggie Smith) and H.J.(Alan Bates), offer to take her in, even though Lois knows so little about her. But H.J. knows her well enough to put his hand on her knee...Marya agrees even though she is warned by a friend about a possible scandal involving them.[/font]
    [font=Century Gothic][/font]
    [font=Century Gothic]"Quartet" is not a bad movie and much less polite than the usual Merchant Ivory production. There is even a bit of bite in this tale of expatriates in Paris, all taking from the city but giving nothing in return. Lois and H.J. act like they are slumming but are wealthy enough to exploit the city for their own purposes. Stephan is selling French art treasures to collectors abroad. And Marya is at their mercy. So, you can see, there are definitely elements of an intriguing and provocative movie in place but it never quite comes together due to a lack of boldness, along with pedestrian directing and editing. [/font]

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Critic Reviews

Christopher Null
February 19, 2004
Christopher Null, Filmcritic.com

Frankly, you'll find much better works from the Merchant-Ivory collection. Full Review

March 26, 2009
Variety

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Vincent Canby
August 30, 2004
Vincent Canby, New York Times

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Dave Kehr
January 1, 2000
Dave Kehr, Chicago Reader

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Emanuel Levy
July 17, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

Derek Adams
February 9, 2006
Derek Adams, Time Out

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May 24, 2003
Film4

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Quartet Trivia

  • In which film did a small town historian (Vincent Price) spin a quartet of horror tales about his hamlet?  Answer »
  • In The Wedding Singer, what song is playing as main character Robbie is being stood up at his own wedding? ( Hint: It's a string quartet arrangement of the song)  Answer »
  • Which one of these films isn't by Wim Wenders?  Answer »
  • In the movie "The Usual Suspects", where was the barbershop quartet located during Verbal Kint's story?  Answer »
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