I highly anticipated this movie, and I can truly say I wasn't disappointed. 'Gosford Park' is stylish and elegant, witty and sharp, well written and excellently acted out. To begin with, I was wondering whether the filmmakers would be able to tie all the different people and their stories together in a coherent way, but my fears were put solidly to rest.
The film is set on a country manor in England in 1932, where a group of guests arrive for a weekend shooting party. We follow both the 'upper class' in the luxurious lounges and their servants in the quarters below, and watch how their lives and actions intertwine. There are literally dozens of people to keep track of, but somehow Robert Altman manages to convey some individual character traits in all of them to help us keep them apart from each other and keep our interest in them going. Numerous plot lines are served for the viewer to enjoy and be puzzled by as the characters eat, drink, laugh, smoke, go hunting, have sex and insult each other with impeccable perfection. Conflicts, jealousy, secret relationships and sexual encounters take place, not only among the nobility, but also between the nobility and their servants. Then, suddenly, a murder takes place. A fumbling police inspector arrives to investigate, but it is one of the servants, a young chambermaid named Mary, who on her own manages to solve the puzzle and discover who the murderer is.
The murder mystery is not the centre of attention of this movie, however. It rather focuses on the relationships between people of different classes, and is a brilliant insight in a 'lost era' the lavish lifestyle of the British upper class in the period between the two world wars. Rarely has the class differences in British society been better portrayed than in this film. Quick glances and subtle (and sometimes even not so subtle) remarks are enough to put someone thoroughly in their place. One of the less fortunate upper class wives appears in the same dress two nights in a row. 'It's so nice to be able to travel light, isn't it' one of the other women sardonically comments. It is also interesting to watch the relationship between the British elite and the small American contingent at the party. 'Oh, don't mind him he's an American', one of the main characters informs the detective when he arrives to investigate the murder. Another excellent example is when the American film producer arrives at breakfast and expects the servants to wait on him, only to be told very coolly and matter-of-factly: 'in England, nobody is served at breakfast'. It's a delicious understatement which really portrays the way (many) Englishmen (used to?) look down upon Americans.
The upper class gossip among themselves; as do the servants below. But interestingly enough, their stories are exchanged in the many private chambers of the manor. Mary's employer, the formidable Countess of Trentham brilliantly played by Maggie Smith downright expects Mary to give her 'the dirt' on the other guests which she has heard from their servants. Discretion is a trait she doesn't value in a maid, she proudly announces unless it's discretion concerning herself, of course. And in the end, it is Mary's ability to put two and two together and uncover the hidden past of several of the weekend guests which enables her to find out who the murderer is.
With a veritable 'who's who' of British elite actors (who all do their very best) involved, it's difficult to point out someone in particular. But Maggie Smith has to be mentioned, as she truly excels here. She certainly has been given the meatiest role, with dozens of razor-sharp one-liners on her repertoire (she effectively castrates Mr. Novello, the actor, who plays the piano in the lounge 'don't encourage him, or he'll go on forever'; and when the American film producer is reluctant to give away the ending of his latest film at the dinner table, she deadpans: 'oh, don't worry nobody here will see it'). She literally steals every scene she's in, and is certainly worthy of her Academy nomination (she should have won, too). Other excellent performances come from Helen Mirren as the head servant, Kristin Scott-Thomas as the snobbish, world-weary lady Sylvia, Stephen Fry as the Inspector (although his incompetence is stressed a little too heavy in my opinion) and Alan Bates as Jennings the (alcoholic) butler.
As a true anglophile, this film was really 'my cup of tea', as the British would say, and I rate it a perfect 6 out of 6 on my dice. Judging from some of the other comments here, however, `Gosford Park' seems to require a certain sense of sophistication to be fully appreciated...
The film is set on a country manor in England in 1932, where a group of guests arrive for a weekend shooting party. We follow both the 'upper class' in the luxurious lounges and their servants in the quarters below, and watch how their lives and actions intertwine. There are literally dozens of people to keep track of, but somehow Robert Altman manages to convey some individual character traits in all of them to help us keep them apart from each other and keep our interest in them going. Numerous plot lines are served for the viewer to enjoy and be puzzled by as the characters eat, drink, laugh, smoke, go hunting, have sex and insult each other with impeccable perfection. Conflicts, jealousy, secret relationships and sexual encounters take place, not only among the nobility, but also between the nobility and their servants. Then, suddenly, a murder takes place. A fumbling police inspector arrives to investigate, but it is one of the servants, a young chambermaid named Mary, who on her own manages to solve the puzzle and discover who the murderer is.
The murder mystery is not the centre of attention of this movie, however. It rather focuses on the relationships between people of different classes, and is a brilliant insight in a 'lost era' the lavish lifestyle of the British upper class in the period between the two world wars. Rarely has the class differences in British society been better portrayed than in this film. Quick glances and subtle (and sometimes even not so subtle) remarks are enough to put someone thoroughly in their place. One of the less fortunate upper class wives appears in the same dress two nights in a row. 'It's so nice to be able to travel light, isn't it' one of the other women sardonically comments. It is also interesting to watch the relationship between the British elite and the small American contingent at the party. 'Oh, don't mind him he's an American', one of the main characters informs the detective when he arrives to investigate the murder. Another excellent example is when the American film producer arrives at breakfast and expects the servants to wait on him, only to be told very coolly and matter-of-factly: 'in England, nobody is served at breakfast'. It's a delicious understatement which really portrays the way (many) Englishmen (used to?) look down upon Americans.
The upper class gossip among themselves; as do the servants below. But interestingly enough, their stories are exchanged in the many private chambers of the manor. Mary's employer, the formidable Countess of Trentham brilliantly played by Maggie Smith downright expects Mary to give her 'the dirt' on the other guests which she has heard from their servants. Discretion is a trait she doesn't value in a maid, she proudly announces unless it's discretion concerning herself, of course. And in the end, it is Mary's ability to put two and two together and uncover the hidden past of several of the weekend guests which enables her to find out who the murderer is.
With a veritable 'who's who' of British elite actors (who all do their very best) involved, it's difficult to point out someone in particular. But Maggie Smith has to be mentioned, as she truly excels here. She certainly has been given the meatiest role, with dozens of razor-sharp one-liners on her repertoire (she effectively castrates Mr. Novello, the actor, who plays the piano in the lounge 'don't encourage him, or he'll go on forever'; and when the American film producer is reluctant to give away the ending of his latest film at the dinner table, she deadpans: 'oh, don't worry nobody here will see it'). She literally steals every scene she's in, and is certainly worthy of her Academy nomination (she should have won, too). Other excellent performances come from Helen Mirren as the head servant, Kristin Scott-Thomas as the snobbish, world-weary lady Sylvia, Stephen Fry as the Inspector (although his incompetence is stressed a little too heavy in my opinion) and Alan Bates as Jennings the (alcoholic) butler.
As a true anglophile, this film was really 'my cup of tea', as the British would say, and I rate it a perfect 6 out of 6 on my dice. Judging from some of the other comments here, however, `Gosford Park' seems to require a certain sense of sophistication to be fully appreciated...