A Room with a View

The Academy Award-winning movie “A Room with a View” is a 1985 British film adaptation of E. M. Forster’s novel, which follows a young upper-class woman on her Grand Tour. The Grand Tour was the traditional trip of Europe undertaken by mainly upper-class European young men, and served as an educational rite of passage. The custom flourished from about 1660 until the advent of large-scale rail transit in the 1840s, and was associated with a standard itinerary. In the 19^th century, educated young women began to also go on the Grand Tour, accompanied by an older female as their chaperone.

Left: Charlotte, Lucy's spinster cousin
Right: Lucy Honeychurch

In the film, the main character, Lucy Honeychurch, played by Helena Bonham-Carter, is on holiday in Florence along with her older cousin and chaperone, Charlotte Bartlett. When the cousins arrive at the pensione where they’ll stay in Italy, they’re troubled by the fact that their rooms do not have a view. At dinner that evening, the two meet fellow guests, George Emerson and his father, who agree to exchange their rooms with Lucy and Charlotte. Lucy begins to develop passionate feelings for George, despite her relationship with an uptight but respectable man from her home named Cecil Vyse, played by Daniel Day-Lewis. Charlotte becomes aware of the attraction between Lucy and George, and orders Lucy to return home to England at once. Back in Surrey, Lucy accepts a marriage proposal from Cecil, but soon after learns that George and his father have moved into her small village. Her feelings for George create a lot of confusion for Lucy, who eventually breaks off her engagement with Cecil. The film ends, despite some troubles between the two, with Lucy and George on their honeymoon at the same pensione where they met in a room with a view. 

Lucy and Julian Sands as George

Sources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Room_with_a_View_(film)

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:3PhZMWFkKeIJ:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Tour+room+with+a+view+the+grand+tour&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us

http://www.fandango.com/aroomwithaview_v42077/plotsummary#

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091867/synopsis

Images:

Helena-world.com

Rottentomatoes.com

Virtual-history.com