"She died because of me, because I loved her."

Rating: 8/10 (27 June 2018)

As is so often the case, I'm very late in getting around to "The English Patient", in this case it's been a couple of decades. I recall the fanfare surrounding the movie when it was released, subsequently repeated when it was the winner of nine Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Told in a series of flashbacks, the story recounts the nature of an affair between Hungarian Count Laszlo de Almasy (Ralph Fiennes) and the married Englishwoman Katharine Clifton (Kristin Scott Thomas). Their passionate relationship ends in a double tragedy for both principals in a confluence of unrelated events, though it could be maintained just as Almasy stated in my summary line, that he was responsible for her death. One may argue the circumstances of Geoffrey Clinton's (Colin Firth) plane crash, though to my mind his attempt at murder/suicide failed only in the respect that his intended victim was the only one who survived.
I can readily understand the conflicted opinions other reviewers bring to the table here. It's a difficult thing to weigh the difference between an unfaithful spouse and an affair that arises out of true love. On that score, I tend to reserve my sympathies on the side of Katharine and Almasy. Yet the story line throws in a complicated betrayal on the part of The Count, who offered his services to the Nazis in order to return to his injured lover in the desert. In that regard, I do not absolve Almasy for the courage of his convictions, even when he rationalizes that "thousands of people DID die, just different people".
Evoking the grand sweep and epic proportions of "Lawrence of Arabia", the film is a haunting tale of love endured under compromising circumstances that ends unsparingly for the characters and viewer alike. The performances of all the principals are noteworthy, with a special nod to Juliette Binoche in her role as Almasy's nurse as his intricate story unfolds. To be fair, the film requires some patience, as it's nearly three hour run time will test the resolve of uncommitted viewers, though many will find their forbearance well rewarded.