MovieChat Forums > Maurice (1987) Discussion > A couple of thoughts *SPOILERS*

A couple of thoughts SPOILERS

posted 15 years ago by dancingjinn
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Just watched this movie again after about 20 years and loved it again.
A couple of thoughts/questions: Did everyone else know when watching this movie for the first time that Alec had missed the boat on purpose so he could be with Maurice? It seemed clear that Maurice knew that but the first time I saw it, I was dreading to find out that Alec had really been killed, died in an accident or some such. It just didn't seem obvious from their last encounter that he would miss the boat to spend his life with Maurice. When Maurice asked him to miss the boat, he said "Are you daft?" and talked about why the relationship would never work. He didn't even give Maurice a hug or kiss goodbye just before he left.

Anyway, I LOVED the ending and was thrilled for the romantic/happy ending but I was on the edge of my seat waiting to find out what happened to Alec. Guess I hadn't seen a lot of gay love stories with happy endings - well none, actually - and I was worried that Alec was too cute to avoid being killed off.

Probably a stupid question but was it clear how Alec was so sure that Maurice was attracted to him before he went through the window? I saw this question a lot in the Brokeback MOuntain boards but in that movie the signals seemed really obvious. In the movie Maurice, I didn't see any signals that Maurice was attracted to Alec before Alec came through the window. But Alec seemed very sure of it. Alec clearly showed interest in Maurice before that, but I thought Maurice was only vaguely friendly toward him at best. Maybe, since Alec knew about Maurice and Clive's history, he just knew that Maurice would be attracted to such a hot young stud as himself? That would be a pretty good bet but were there more signals in the movie that I missed?

[–] andersen-eva 15 years ago

No, Alec isn't certain of anything but that he's attracted to Maurice, he's taking chance. But Maurice is actually at that point a bit more than vaguely friendly; when in the drawing room, he notices Alec in a different from the rest of the party Alec and helps shift the piano, when everyone else leaves. The next evening they have a little conversation in a somewhat peer-like manner. In the book there's even more of a few, short encounters between them. If you think back to the time in the gun room, where Alec wishes Maurice happy birthday, and the way servants were treated, it's clear there is some kind of *personal* connection, even if not clearly sexual. I think Alec is counting on that.

Maurice's biggest transgression against society, and the biggest conflict in the story, is class transgression. Not that the sexual transgression didn't matter, but had Maurice taken up with an equal, and they'd kept very quiet about it, society would most likely have pretended not to see. As Forster notes in the afterword of the book, it's not the idea that homosexuality exists that soceity hates so much, but the idea of having to *think* of it.

I can't remember (from the book) whether Alec knows there's a possibility that Maurice would welcome sexual advances, he's fairly new at the place ('an import of Anne's' to paraphrase Forster) - he would probably have heard some gossip, as implied in the film. But (this is in book) - Maurice actually calls out 'come!' out the window - sort of semi-unconsciuously - two nights in a row, and Alec hears him. Alec is also uncertain - in the book he tells Maurice that the first night, as the thought occured to him to come to Maurice, he thinks 'he doesn't really me' and decides to wait until the next night. Must have been quite a disappointment to see him leave next morning.

Interesting to read your thoughts about Maurice waiting for Alec at the boat in Southampton. I read the book years before finally getting to see the film. No, I don't think Maurice 'knew', but I can imagine he'd hold a glimmer of hope. I'm pretty sure the audience does :D

If you are interested in the characters, you really should read the book. There's lots more information about espcially Clive and Alec that's not made explicit in the film. Much more insight into their thoughts and feeling and why they act like they do.