David Lean returned to the screen after a self-imposed absence of 14 years with this vivid, well-directed adaptation of the Forster classic. The director has slightly altered the focus of the novel, rendering its key event in a somewhat less ambiguous light, but, in general, stays faithful to its tale of clashing cultures. Lean perfectly captures Forster's satire of the smug insularity and poisonous racism of the British Raj of 1924, setting the myopia of its members against the exoticism and natural beauty of the subcontinent. Young Adela Quested (Judy Davis), something of a hothouse flower, is far more enlightened than her fellow Brits on matters of race, but also far more susceptible to such beauty, which induces in her a sort of subtly erotic fever. What actually transpired between she and the hospitable Dr. Aziz (Victor Banerjee) in the Marabar caves was left a mystery by the author, but Lean implies a fit of virginal hysteria on the part of Adela rather than any violation. This dilutes the complexity of Forster's novel, while reducing Aziz to the role of victim. Yet, as the tragedy gains momentum, the novelist's themes -- the destructiveness of colonialism, the unbridgeable differences between the two cultures, and the wisdom of the older civilization -- remain clear. Among a brilliant cast, Judy Davis seems particularly inspired, and Dame Peggy Ashcroft is memorable as well. The one glitch is the casting of Guinness as an unintentionally comic Godbole. Lean's characteristic visual splendor is nearly a forgone conclusion.