Merchant Ivory does period (do they do anything else?) and they do it right, Howards End is a prime example. In Howards End we are transported back to a time when the flat was just becoming the norm in London and where people longed for big houses in the country to take them away from bustling city life. Who can forget the Christmas shopping scene, so lush with Victorian details what a magical set and what splendid costumes. I can't imagine that the period could be restored more realistically, or at least Merchant Ivory has created an image of that time for us that seems realistic and that's the key. The acting is wonderful, so great to see Helena Bonham Carter play a more empowered woman after our Merchant Ivory initiation to her as innocence personified in A Room with a View . Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson are also brilliant. If you like period films then this is one you'll love. I watch it over and over.