Substance: One of those movies that can be enjoyed if you already have read the book, but are too elliptical if you have not, because they are missing a lot of the internal ruminations that explain behavior. However, the brevity does make the protagonist's choices very clear, almost starkly simple.
Characters are unbelievably uninterested in even the most elementary conversation, after being dropped into situations that demand explanation or at least interaction.
Edith's relationship with her lover is murky to say the least. Presumably they have some episodes of passion or understanding to explain her devotion to him and his indifference to her.
Forty minutes into the movie, we still don't know what 'sin' Edith committed to be 'banished' (by whom?) to the Hotel.
Beats around the bush, but basically the question is: should you strive for happiness or just contentment? Edith has neither, apparently - perhaps because she is looking in a dark alley for the coin lost elsewhere.

SPOILER ALERT (as if it made any difference):
Edith claims to want a consistent 'homey' relationship; she jilts the man who offers one, turns down another when she finds he is just as amoral as he said he was; returns to the 'love of her life' even though she sees him 0-2 times a month.

CONCLUSION: Good people doing good things are usually very happy; bad people doing bad things are usually satisfied; good people doing bad things are seldom content or happy. (Bad people doing good things repeatedly become good people).

STYLE:: The scenery is lovely, the hotel milieu convincing, and the music pleasant. The pace is deliberately slow, in the eighties romantic style: heavy on scenery and soul-ful looks, low on dialogue and action. This is what happens when you film literachur. The fllashbacks are annoying (and double-backs even more so), especially when the people and settings are not radically differentiated from the 'current' time-line.

To the film's credit, they follow the British convention of suiting the actors to the role: Anna Massey is not beautiful, and is dressed down for the part. Character roles are superb caricatures of the upper-class stereotypes.

Bon Mots: 'Good women always believe an offense is their fault; bad women never do.' ( )