Tony Richardson wrote and directed The Hotel New Hampshire, based on John Irving’s 1981 novel of the same name.
Ensemble driven, the movie stars Jodie Foster, Beau Bridges, Rob Lowe, and Nastassja Kinski.
Populated by a gallery of of oddball characters, the tale centers on the Berry family that, despite all kinds of disasters, still manages to keeps going.
Set in the 1950s, the faithfully adapted tale centers on Win Berry, his wife, and their five children, John, Franny, Frank, Lilly, and Egg.
The Berrys open a hotel near the prep school attended by their children, naming it the Hotel New Hampshire.
In the course of the story, John loses his virginity to the hotel waitress; Frank comes out to Franny and John; Franny is raped on campus Chip Dove and his buddies; John confesses he’s in love with Franny; the family dog Sorrow dies and Frank has him stuffed.
Author Irving wrote that he was very happy with the adaptation, complaining only that he felt Richardson tried to make the film too faithful.
Theatrically released by Orion Pictures on March 9, 1984, the picture was a box office failure, grossing $5.1 million against its $7.5 million budget.
