Maurice is 11, rather than 14. The film omits almost all of the novel's philosophical dialogue and many subplots, such as Maurice's desire for the schoolboy Dickie. The scenes dealing with the subplot were filmed but not included in the final cut. The film expands the Wildean character of Lord Risley and sees him sentenced to six months of hard labour for homosexual conduct; in the novel, he is never imprisoned. In one deleted scene (first released in Cohen Media's 2002 DVD edition), Risley commits suicide. In the novel, the Durham family seat is Penge, on the border of Wiltshire and Somerset; in the film, the country house is in Pendersleigh Park. The hypnotist Lasker-Jones appears in the film rather more than in the novel; he is the person most understanding of Maurice's psychological and social situation. Release The film had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival in 1987, where Ivory was awarded a Silver Lion as Best Director, sharing the prize with Ermanno Olmi. James Wilby and Hugh Grant were jointly awarded Best Actor, and Richard Robbins received the prize for his music. The film received favourable reviews when it opened in New York City. Maurice received an Academy Award nomination in the Best Costume Design category. Critical reception Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reports that 82% of critics gave the film a positive review based on 33 reviews; the critics' consensus reads, "Maurice sensitively explores the ramifications of forbidden desire with a powerful love story brought to life by the outstanding efforts of a talented cast." Ken Hanke from Mountain Xpress said it was probably Merchant–Ivory's best film. In The New York Times Janet Maslin observed "The novel's focus is predominantly on the inner life of the title character, but the film, while faithful, is broader. Moving slowly, with a fine eye for detail, it presents the forces that shape Maurice as skillfully as it brings the character to life." Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times rated the film three stars out of a possible four, commenting: Claire Tomalin writing for Sight & Sound called the film "subtle, intelligent, moving and absorbing [...] extraordinary in the way it mixes fear and pleasure, horror and love, it's a stunning success for a team who seems to have mastered all the problems of making literary films". Judy Stone in the San Francisco Chronicle wrote: "To director James Ivory's credit,