Maurice

Maurice (1987), a British film based on the novel by E.M. Forster, follows an Edwardian mans journey to self-acceptance as someone who loves and desires men. Rebutting its critical reception, this volume champions the film as a sympathetic adaptation, making a case for its underappreciated positive depiction of gay love.

Maurice, James Ivorys 1987 adaptation of the E.M. Forster novel, follows an Edwardian mans journey from the awakening of his desire for and love of men to self-acceptance. One of the most politically resistant films of the 1980s, Maurice dared to depict a young mans coming-out story and a happy ending for its lovers, Maurice and Alec.

James Ivory and producer Ismail Merchant, a couple whose cinema is synonymous with period film adaptation, released Maurice during the first AIDS decade, a time of flagrant transatlantic homophobia. Criticism following its release described Iv