A socialite of high birth but meagre financial means, Lily Bart (Gillian Anderson) is a woman in her late twenties navigating the perilous and delicate game of New York high society at the start of the new twentieth century.
Acutely aware that she must find a match before it becomes too late for her to be married, her carefully laid plans are soon upended by Gus Treynor (Dan Aykroyd) and Sim Rosedale (Anthony LaPaglia), two would-be suitors who pave the way towards social and financial ruin.
Featuring an Oscar-worthy turn by Anderson and stunning imagery captured by Remi Adefarasin, The House of Mirth is a gripping, often excruciating portrait of social expectation and class treachery, with Davies deftly turning his hand to a traditional period setting.
Like Jane Austen with the gloves off, we think it’s one of the great literary adaptations, all too rarely seen on the big screen.
This film is screening at Tyneside Cinema as a part of our season Living as Poetry: A Tribute to Terence Davies which you can learn more about here!