The House of Mirth

As the husband-hunting heroine of this Edith Wharton corset-opera focusing on turn of the century social politics, Gillian Anderson erases any and all presumptions based on her iconic role in The X-Files. Speaking deliciously eloquent dialogue and looking stunning in splendid period costumes, she is brilliant as Lily Bart, a beautiful young socialite whose life becomes devastated by scandal when she can't reconcile her heart with the fact that she must marry well to maintain her station and pay off her debts. Director Terence Davies, who adapted the screenplay, took other casting risks as well, and while some pay off (Eric Stoltz as the playboy she cannot forsake, Dan Aykroyd and Anthony LaPaglia as undesirable suitors), others flop (the over-acting Eleanor Bron as Lily's disapproving aunt and benefactor). Although other minor missteps, such as the sometimes accelerated storytelling, keep the film from truly soaring, if you brace yourself against the narrative whiplash, The House of Mirth is ultimately a transporting piece of Masterpiece Theater-style cinema. Recommended. (R. Blackwelder)