The English Patient
World War II, Tuscany. Nurse Hana cares for a burned, amnesiac crash survivor. As his memories return, a tragic love affair with a married woman unfolds, entangling them in betrayal, danger, and passion. A sweeping, emotional epic about love, loss, and the scars of war. One of the finest films ever made.
DIRECTOR
Anthony Minghella
Actors
2h 42m • Rated M • Romance, War Drama • UK/USA (1996)
Ralph Fiennes • Juliette Binoche • Kristin Scott Thomas • Willem Dafoe • Naveen Andrews
He is entirely bandaged, covered in burns and speaks perfect English, but has no recollection of who he is. In Hana’s care, they begin to piece together his memories and we are transported into an extraordinary sweeping story of love, betrayal and passion. He is the Hungarian Count Almasy and was fatally in love with a married woman (Kirsten Scott Thomas). In the unravelling of the story, we discover that Hana and the mysterious man are in danger of revenge by an intelligence agent named Caravaggio (Willam Dafoe). The fates of all characters become entwined in an epic, dangerous, and breathtakingly romantic story. One of the greatest films in my lifetime. Paolo Rotondo
CRITICS ROUNDUP
Epic, haunting, and emotionally luxuriant
The English Patient is arguably one of the most unforgettable films of the 90s. It was adapted by Anthony Minghella from the Booker Prize-winning novel by Michael Ondaatje. It’s WWII during the liberation of Italy, inside the ancient Monastery - Villa San Girolamo Tuscany, and nurse Hana (Juliette Binoche) cares for a severely burned man. She has lost her own true love in the horror of war and forms a deep connection with him. He was rescued, barely alive from a burning plane, shot down in the North African desert.