Tonight's Movie: Merchant Ivory: The Documentary (2024) - A Kino Lorber Blu-ray Review

Not long ago I was surprised to discover I've never seen a film made by Merchant Ivory Productions, though I have copies of several of their best-known titles.

When I learned that MERCHANT IVORY: THE DOCUMENTARY (2024) would be released on Blu-ray by Kino Lorber and Cohen Media Group, I thought it would be a great starting point to learn more about their films.

The documentary traces the filmmaking partnership of James Ivory and Ismail Merchant, which began in 1961 and lasted until Merchant's death in 2005. Together they made over 40 films in that time span, and they also quietly shared a personal relationship.

Most of the company's films were produced by Merchant and directed by Ivory, with many scripted by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala, who died in 2013. Ivory has continued to work, setting a record as the oldest screenwriting Oscar winner for his screenplay for CALL ME BY YOUR NAME (2017).

Some of the best-known Merchant Ivory films, all of which are in my collection, are THE EUROPEANS (1979), A ROOM WITH A VIEW (1985), HOWARDS END (1992), and THE REMAINS OF THE DAY (1993). Based on clips from the documentary and recommendations from friends, A ROOM WITH A VIEW seems to be their most popular film and the best starting point for my viewing.

MERCHANT IVORY: THE DOCUMENTARY struck me as somewhat unusual, as film documentaries go, in that much of its 112 minutes is critical of its subjects.

Actor after actor, including Emma Thompson and Helena Bonham Carter, discusses what a difficult experience it was to make films with Merchant Ivory, chiefly because of their very low budgets. Merchant was often cobbling together funding "on the go" as filming was underway.

At the same time the actors clearly had an appreciation that whatever the difficulties during filming, they were part of some very special, high-quality productions. And they were often fed well, with Merchant cooking for the company; Martha Stewart even turns up in the documentary. (There are multiple Merchant cookbooks!) Actors such as Thompson and Carter chose to appear in multiple Merchant Ivory films despite the challenges involved.

While the documentary presents a number of clips and an overall appreciation for the elegance and quality of Merchant Ivory films, it particularly focuses on the filmmakers' lives and relationship(s), which I found somewhat less interesting than their movies. I did smile upon learning that Ivory attended two schools attended by our daughters, the University of Oregon and USC's School of Cinematic Arts.

I preferred the approach taken by another recent documentary celebrating a cinematic partnership, MADE IN ENGLAND: THE FILMS OF POWELL AND PRESSBURGER (2024), which, as its title implies, focused on their movies, providing in-depth analysis of what was admittedly a shorter list of films.

That said, MERCHANT IVORY: THE DOCUMENTARY was interesting and a good entry point for understanding the filmmakers and their work. Perhaps one day there will be a companion piece focusing on their movies in greater depth.

MERCHANT IVORY: THE DOCUMENTARY was written and directed by Stephen Soucy from a script he wrote with Jon Hart.

The Kino Lorber print of this new film, as expected, looks and sounds fine.

Disc extras include interviews with five actors; the trailer; a featurette on music in Merchant Ivory films; a deleted scene; and two film festival introductions.

Thanks to Kino Lorber for providing a review copy of this Blu-ray.

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