A Passage to India | |
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![]() Original theatrical poster | |
Directed by | David Lean |
Screenplay by | David Lean |
Based on | |
Produced by | John Brabourne Richard Goodwin |
Starring | |
Cinematography | Ernest Day |
Edited by | David Lean |
Music by | Maurice Jarre |
Production companies | |
Distributed by | Columbia-EMI-Warner Distributors (United Kingdom)[1] Columbia Pictures (United States and Canada) |
Release date |
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Running time | 163 minutes |
Countries | United Kingdom United States[2] |
Language | English |
Budget | £17 million[3] or $14.5 million[4] |
Box office | $40 million (est.) |
A Passage to India is a 1984 epic historical drama film written, directed and edited by David Lean. The screenplay is based on the 1960 play by Santha Rama Rau, which was in turn based on the 1924 novel by E. M. Forster.
Set in the 1920s during the period of the British Raj, the film tells the story of the interactions of several characters in the fictional city of Chandrapore: Dr Aziz, Mrs Moore, Adela Quested, and Richard Fielding. When newcomer to India, Adela, accuses Aziz of an attempted rape in the Marabar Caves, the city is split between the British elite and the native underclass as the budding friendship between Aziz and Fielding is tested. The film explores themes of racism, imperialism, religion, and the nature of relationships both friendly and marital.
This was the final film of Lean's career and the first feature film he had directed in fourteen years since Ryan's Daughter in 1970. Receiving praise as Lean's finest since Lawrence of Arabia, A Passage to India received eleven nominations at the 57th Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress for Judy Davis' performance as Adela Quested. It won Best Supporting Actress for Peggy Ashcroft's performance as Mrs. Moore, making her, at 77, the oldest actress to win the award, and Best Original Score for Maurice Jarre, his third award in that category.