XoWizIama Excellent adaptation.

Sexyloutak Absolutely the worst movie.

Baseshment I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

Staci Frederick Blistering performances.

carbuff You really must be familiar with the movies from the earlier mania for British period dramas like "The Jewel in the Crown" to appreciate this spoof, and that may no longer apply to a lot of people.With hindsight, it has only aged OK, since many of the jokes come across as lame or stale now, although there is still some pretty funny stuff in it. I'm certain that I would have rated it higher if I'd watched it at the height of all things Merchant Ivory ("A Room with a View", etc.). Overall, it's still halfway decent British comedy, which makes it better than most comedy anyway. The best attitude about this film seems to be take what you can, since it certainly does have enough humorous lines and scenes to redeem itself.

ajrg-17-381639 Every character you have ever thought was full of himself or herself from Merchant and Ivory, especially the author EM Forster is lampooned here, and the more you know of these books and movies the funnier it is. EM Forster was a homosexual at the start of the 20th century who wrote about the British view of class and being ethnocentric. The movie takes place in Italy and India, as do the EM Forster books. The characters have servants hauling around British turf, sending cricket balls and mallets to prisoners and proving themselves inept at everything from cooking to swimming while being sexually repressed and over educated. This movie has been seriously underrated.

starbug1-1 This film is a glorious tribute to so many 'stiff' period pieces as well as such comedies as 'Carry on up the Kyber'. It is also beautiful to watch with real locations used in the UK, Italy and India (rather than at the back of Shepperton studios).While the plot may lag in some places, the references and in-jokes are so dense that you can blink and miss many of them.The list of movies and television series that are lampooned is massive, but a few include 'Chariots of Fire', 'Brideshead Revisited', anything with Helena Bonham-Carter, 'Upstairs Downstairs', 'Lawrence of Arabia' and 'Gandhi'.Peter Ustinov (Horace) letches like Sid James, Prunella Scales (Aunt Agnes) stands her ground like Joan Sims, Sam West (Edward) bumbles like Charles Hawtree and Robert Portal (Cedric) sneers almost like Kenneth Williams. Sean Pertwee (George) saves the day a la Jim Dale and Georgina Cates (Emily) is feisty like Barbara Windsor etc. etc.The scene where Cedric meets Aunt Agnes is priceless, if only for the 'Daughter of Zeus' gag.'Stiff Upper Lips' is definitely worth seeing more than once.

pip-17 I love a good parody, and this movie is right on the money! I am an American, and I've enjoyed many British films over the years, particularly Merchant-Ivory fare. I was so (pleasantly) surprised to find that the Brits made such a clever, funny film, and I thought the running gag of the 'typical' American tourist couple, very witty and on target, too! I saw this on Masterpiece Theater, of all things, and I have seldom laughed so hard at anything on PBS since Jeeves and Wooster. What a great movie, I just wish it had more of a theatrical release in America, but I'm not surprised that it didn't. I don't think many Americans 'get' this type of humor anyway. It ranks up there with the best American parodies of genre films. Besides 'Howard's End', 'Room with a View', 'Passage to India', and Brideshead references, there were definite pokes at the Jane Austen-type of films, as well. Very worth renting and/or buying a copy!