Gosford Park

Starring:Maggie Smith, Kristin Scott Thomas
Studio: Universal Studios
Product Type: DVD

Amazon.com essential video

Gosford Park finds director Robert Altman in sumptuously fine form indeed. From the opening shots, as the camera peers through the trees at an opulent English country estate, Altman exploits the 1930s period setting and whodunit formula of the film expertly. Aristocrats gather together for a weekend shooting party with their dutiful servants in tow, and the upstairs/downstairs division of the classes is perfectly tailored to Altman's method (as employed in Nashville and Short Cuts) of overlapping bits of dialogue and numerous subplots in order to betray underlying motives and the sins that propel them. Greed, vengeance, snobbery, and lust stir comic unrest as the near dizzying effect of brisk script turns is allayed by perhaps Altman's strongest ensemble to date. First and foremost, Maggie Smith is marvelous as Constance, a dependent countess with a quip for every occasion; Michael Gambon, as the ill-fated host, Sir William McCordle, is one of the most palpably salacious characters ever on screen; Kristin Scott Thomas is perfectly cold yet sexy as Lady Sylvia, Sir William's wife; and Helen Mirren, Emily Watson, and Clive Owen are equally memorable as key characters from the bustling servants' quarters below. Gosford Park manages to be fabulously entertaining while exposing human shortcomings, compromises, and our endless need for confession. --Fionn Meade

Description

The Academy Award winner for Best Original Screenplay, Gosford Park is a whodunit as only director Robert Altman could do it. As a hunting party gathers at the country estate, no one is aware that before the weekend is over, someone will be murdered - twice! The police are baffled but the all-seeing, all-hearing servants know that almost everyone had a motive.
This critically-acclaimed murder mystery features a who's who of celebrated actors. With a diverse cast of characters - all with something to hide - it'll keep you guessing right to the surprising end. Gosford Park proves that murder can be such an inconvenience.

Customer Reviews:

Gosford Park.......2007-06-04

This is a clever "Country Manor" mystery with some very fine actors in roles quite different from their ordinary ones. The look at 'below stairs' staff is most interesting.

Hollywood grossness versus British aristocratic bleakness.......2007-06-03

Well played and pleasant but absolutely sinister. D.H Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover in reverse. Lady Chatterley is in fact a Lord. And everything is different. The Lord has the right to have as many affairs with the female servants as he wants. He has the right to have as many children with these female servants as he wants and then to have the babies abandoned and sent to orphanages. Absolutely disgusting. And what's more he may keep the servants for further use eventually. When we know that we know the murder of the Lord will be accepted by everyone in his own social class as justified, that they will cover it up for the police not to find out the murderer. And what's more they will have been backboneless enough not to murder him themselves and let the servants murder him. Here Robert Altman imagines a thriller that becomes a vicious denunciation of the deepest hypocrisy you can imagine, that of the British aristocracy. There is little to add to this tale, except that all in all only the servants have the human dignity that provides them with some human feelings, including for the son that has managed to survive and is condemned to remain officially unknown. It is also the servants who have the liking and taste for the Hollywood sentimental and sentimentalese songs that are sung for the entertainment of the ladies and gentlemen who treat that music as some charming accompaniment for their simmering hatred of the world and themselves. Of course Altman also manages to put one note against the Americans in the two characters from California, one having a typically non-Anglo-Saxon name, viz. Weissman. They are vicious enough to infiltrate the servant quarters just for the sake of a film on the very same situation, hence to guarantee the realism of the servants' side of the film. But they are also gross enough to reveal the subterfuge before the end and that reveals too how much the servants hate this indiscretion that reveals their side of ,the household to someone from the other side of the household. The gap between the two social classes that live along to one another in this mansion is wider than the distance between the earth and the moon.

Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine & University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne

Best Contemporary English Murder Mystery on Film.......2007-05-18

If you want to spend a rainy evening at a stately English estate guessing whodunit?, this classic Altman film is for you. Star-studded cast in a complex, intertwined storyline with great plot twists and period details to perfection. Definitely worth the purchase. You'll watch it over and over just to decipher all the witty British dialogue.

Gosford Paark.......2007-05-07

I thought this was an excellant movie and have watched it several times.

Enjoyed it more the second time around.......2007-03-26

I first watched Gosford Park when it came out several years ago. Last night, I decided to give it a second viewing. This movie is really excellent. The acting is top-notch. Being that it is Hellen Mirren time after the last academy awards, I was able to really focus in on her performance which is excellent in Gosford Park. The movie is somewhat difficult due to Altman's use of multiple characters talking at the same time. His technique; however, is pretty close to everyday life, so it is just a matter of focusing in. Great storyline, with the "help" suffering the same gossip, and jealousy issues the upper class endure.

Highly recommended 5 star film.

Average customer rating:

AN UPSTAIRS/DOWNSTAIRS WHODUNIT...

Gosford Park
Starring: Maggie Smith , Michael Gambon , Kristin Scott Thomas , Camilla Rutherford , and Charles Dance
Director: Robert Altman
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Customer Reviews:

AN UPSTAIRS/DOWNSTAIRS WHODUNIT..........2006-10-25

Directed by Robert Altman, this film take place in the English country side of the 1930s at the lavish and beautiful estate known as Gosford Park. Sir William McCordle (Michael Gambon) and his wife, Sylvia (Kristin Scott Thomas) host a large, weekend hunting party for a distinguished assemblage of guests, who arrive accompanied by their downstairs entourage.

It soon becomes clear that the film revolves around a hodge podge of subplots and intrigues, both upstairs and downstairs, some of which are quite interesting, others seemingly less so. They all become pertinent, however, when one of them is murdered by someone in their midst. The film plays as if it were a more upscale and lavish version of the PBS series "Mystery" or as a film based upon an Agatha Christie mystery.

The cast is stellar with excellent performances by all. Maggie Smith is outstanding in the role of Constance Trentham, a snobby, self-absorbed, old biddy in need of money, so that she can continue the lifestyle to which she is accustomed. Jeremy Northam is wonderful playing matinee idol, Ivor Novello, and continues to extend his range, as this role requires him to sing, which he does quite credibly, in fact.

Helen Mirren and Eileen Atkins are superlative as the housekeeper, Mrs. Wilson, and the cook, Mrs. Croft, who are, apparently, at war with each other. Richard E, Grant, Alan Bates, Derek Jacobi, Emily Watson, and Kelly MacDonald are wonderful as part of the core of downstairs folks through whose eyes the viewer see events unfold.

Stephen Fry deserves mention for his brief, though memorable, turn as the laid back Inspector Thompson, whose bumbling investigative efforts seem almost sure to leave the murder unsolved. The audience, however, knows who did it by film's end, even though Inspector Thompson appears not to have a clue.

The cinematography is beautiful, as it captures the sumpuousness and richness of the upstairs life in the manor home. It also captures the bleakness and confinement of downstairs life, as well, serving to further underline the great divide that exists between the two. The gulf is further delineated by one of the subplots, which sees the character played by Ryan Phillippe gamely straddle both worlds.

The one small problem I found with the film is that, because there are so many characters with their own subplots and intrigues, the film is somewhat confusing at times. Moreover, some of the dialogue is occasionally unintelligible and garbled, due to overlapping dialogue, which was a bit annoying. Watching the DVD with the English subtitles feature on, however, would probably resolve this issue.

The DVD offers a number of interesting features, including an enjoyable mini- ducumentary of Altman's efforts to ensure authenticity of period detail. They apparently hired a cook, a butler, and a maid who were in service during the early nineteen thirties as a sort of sounding board as to how things were done. It also features two commentaries, as well as a short on the making of Gosford Park. It is a value packed DVD and well worth the money. Viewers who like period pieces and mysteries will especially enjoy it.

Charlie Rose with Judi Dench; Maggie Smith (August 28, 2002)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Judi Dench; Maggie Smith (August 28, 2002)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Description

An interview with actress Dame Judi Dench, about her recent Oscar-nominated role as author Iris Murdoch in the film Iris, and her lengthy career on screen and stage. Then, Oscar-nominated actress Dame Maggie Smith talks about her career and recent Oscar-nominated role in Robert Altman's film, Gosford Park.

Charlie Rose with Maggie Smith (March 1, 2002)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Maggie Smith (March 1, 2002)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Description

A conversation in London with Academy Award-winning British actress, Maggie Smith. She discusses her performance in Robert Altman's mystery Gosford Park, role in Harry Potter, and development as an actress from the stage to the screen.

Average customer rating:

it was done; pass the marmalade.
Sure, there's a murder, but it's all done with style
"Nothing's more exhausting than breaking in a lady's maid."
AN UPSTAIRS/DOWNSTAIRS WHODUNIT...
An excellent murder mystery with an endearingly old-fashioned pace!

Gosford Park [Region 2]
Starring: Maggie Smith , Michael Gambon , Kristin Scott Thomas , Camilla Rutherford , and Charles Dance
Director: Robert Altman
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Customer Reviews:

it was done; pass the marmalade........2006-11-17

While this film may be classified as a "whodunit", the "who" is really the least significant element of the entire film. Rather, the overarching theme is "that it was done."

Julian Fellowes' script is absolutely brilliant--but what makes the film even more brilliant is the way the script is framed and presented. It's not just lines spoken within a scene, it's bits of information you catch in passing, snatches of conversation from every side. You have to piece together what happened for yourself, rather than being beaten over the head with it.

I love that there is a servant in every scene. It perfectly captures the trust the "upstairs" people have in the "downstairs" folk, and shows that one who gets the story from servants is very well-informed indeed.

I have been known to watch this film, start-to-finish, three times in a row.

Sure, there's a murder, but it's all done with style.......2006-06-28

The murder is the least important element of this movie. For me, the movie is all about style -- English upperclass, country house style with dollops of what it took below the stairs to keep everything running.

What makes the movie work for me are two things: that style is brought to life with quite a bit of wicked (but not malicious) humor; and second, some extremely good acting. These two elements are exemplified in the funny, mannered performance of Jeremy Northam as Ivor Novello, singing Novello's popular and ickily sentimental songs (although Her Mother Came, Too is still amusing). I can't think of a performance in the movie that wasn't first rate, including those by the two Americans, Bob Balaban and Ryan Phillippe. Well, maybe Stephen Fry.

Even the heavy-going plot lines, which could easily have sunk into melodrama, are rescued by the performances of Mirren, Atkins, Watson, Bates, etc. And the bit players also were outstanding. I especially liked the chubby young scullery helper. I just hope she didn't get pregnant...and that she always washed her hands before helping out with the carrots.

Altman, for me, has made so many movies of such varying quality that it's hard to figure out where to place him. I wouldn't put this one in the same league as McCabe and Mrs. Miller or Nashville, but I think it fits comfortably along side Cookie's Fortune, another film I like a lot.

"Nothing's more exhausting than breaking in a lady's maid.".......2006-06-20

The upperclass friends and relations of Sir William McCordle (Michael Gambon) arrive at his country house for a weekend of shooting, accompanied by maids, footmen, and valets, all of whom will be staying under one roof. Sir William is a mean-spirited and self-centered old man, married to a much younger, emotionally distant wife (Kristin Scott Thomas), with many family members dependent upon his continuing largesse. The hilariously waspish Countess of Trentham (Maggie Smith), who believes she has a lifetime stipend, arrives with young Mary Maceachran (Kelly MacDonald), who is trying valiantly to become a good lady's maid. Ivor Novello (Jeremy Northam), a Hollywood star, and Morris Weissman (Bob Balaban), a producer of Charlie Chan movies, are the only guests without aristocratic backgrounds and inherited privilege. The atmosphere of the house, filled with venomous "friends" and relations, soon becomes even more poisonous.

The "below stairs" lives of the servants are also fully revealed, as they share living quarters, eat meals together, tend to the laundry and cooking, and gossip about their employers. The butler Jennings (Alan Bates) and the head housekeeper (Helen Mirren) run the household and try to guarantee that no real-world cares will intrude upon the lives of their employers. Since "upstairs" and "downstairs" occasionally meet very privately at night, secrets abound, many of them secrets of long standing. When Sir William is poisoned and stabbed ("Trust Sir William to be murdered twice"), nearly everyone has a motive for wanting him dead.

For director Robert Altman, the primary focus of the film is on the characters, their way of life, and their values, with the murder mystery secondary. Set in late November, the end of the year 1932, the action takes place when this secure aristocratic lifestyle is also nearing its end, something that the arrival of the newly rich Hollywood characters, Novello and Weissman, illustrates. Dramatic cinematography (by Andrew Dunn) emphasizes the cold and rainy dreariness of the weekend, and suggests parallels with the coldness of the dying aristocracy.

Interior shots reveal the contrasts between the elegant and mannered lives of the "upstairs" characters and the hardworking daily lives of the "downstairs" characters, who adhere to their own rigid social codes. Every detail rings true, and as the characters' lives and interrelationships are revealed obliquely in brief snippets of seemingly unrelated conversations, a broad picture of the upstairs and downstairs lifestyles gradually emerges. Fully developed, many-leveled, wonderfully acted, often funny, and impeccably directed and filmed, this is a film one can watch again and again with delight. Mary Whipple

AN UPSTAIRS/DOWNSTAIRS WHODUNIT..........2006-05-28

An excellent murder mystery with an endearingly old-fashioned pace! .......2006-05-23

Gosford Park was directed and conceived by the great Robert Altman. As in so many Altman movies, the cast is composed of many well known actors. In this case it works, the plot is well constructed and the screenplay well executed. It behooves the viewer to take time to watch the first hour of the movie as it painstakingly lays down the foundation of the story and establishes the characters--this is not a thriller that will rocket you from scene to scene. It is an old-fashioned mystery crafted by a master film-maker.

The story unfolds over several days of shooting in a beautiful country mansion in England during the 1930's. The class system still holds sway in this setting where many of the guests bring their own personal servants. The problematic nature of the relationship between the haves and have-nots is the central problem of the story and results in murder.

Among many fine performances is Maggie Smith, a dagger tongued elderly harpy who can be heard in almost any scene languidly complaining about everything. Derek Jacoby is touching in the few moments he is seen on screen. Stephen Fry is unctiously amusing as a bumbling inspector, though he does chew the scenery a bit. Helen Mirren provides her usual amazingly adept performance, playing the iron-fisted housekeeper whose emotions are kept out of sight except to us, her audience.

This is a very fine movie--take the time to watch and savor.

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Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Stephen Shepard; Robert Altman & Julian Fellowes; Tilda Swinton (January 10, 2002)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Description

The editor-in-chief of BusinessWeek, Stephen Shepard, explains the latest developments in the Enron case. Also, director Robert Altman and screenwriter Julian Fellowes talk about their film, Gosford Park. Finally, Oscar-nominated actress Tilda Swinton discusses her performance in The Deep End.

Charlie Rose with Norman Ornstein; Kristin Scott Thomas; Lawrence Lessig (January 4, 2002)

Average customer rating:

Charlie Rose with Norman Ornstein; Kristin Scott Thomas; Lawrence Lessig (January 4, 2002)

Manufacturer: Charlie Rose, Inc.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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Description

Norman Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute analyzes Senator Tom Daschle's speech on the economy and increasing deficit. Then, actress Kristin Scott Thomas talks about her performance in Robert Altman's Gosford Park. Finally, professor of law at Stanford University Lawrence Lessig talks about his creativity and his new book, The Future of Ideas.

Average customer rating:

Gosford Park
Hollywood grossness versus British aristocratic bleakness
Best Contemporary English Murder Mystery on Film
Gosford Paark
Enjoyed it more the second time around

Gosford Park [Region 2]
Starring: Maggie Smith , Michael Gambon , Kristin Scott Thomas , Camilla Rutherford , and Charles Dance
Director: Robert Altman
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Comedy | Genres | DVD | Video

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( G ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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Customer Reviews:

Gosford Park.......2007-06-04

This is a clever "Country Manor" mystery with some very fine actors in roles quite different from their ordinary ones. The look at 'below stairs' staff is most interesting.

Hollywood grossness versus British aristocratic bleakness.......2007-06-03

Best Contemporary English Murder Mystery on Film.......2007-05-18

Gosford Paark.......2007-05-07

I thought this was an excellant movie and have watched it several times.

Enjoyed it more the second time around.......2007-03-26

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