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Nominated for numerous Academy Awards, "Gosford Park" is
not only the best film of 2001, but also one of the best films I
have seen in my entire life, a Robert Altman classic which ranks up
there with other Altman films like "Nashville",
"Short Cuts", and even "M*A*S*H". To put
it as plainly as I can--this is a masterpiece of modern cinema and
deserves to win every single award for which it is nominated.
The
setting of this tale is Gosford Park, a large mansion belonging to
Sir William McCordle (Michael Gambon) and Lady Sylvia McCordle
(Kristen Scott Thomas), where a party is being held--two days of
hunting, eating, and fellowship. The guest list is large,
including an enormously talented cast, mostly British. The
film tells the story from two viewpoints--the guests and the
servants. The guests are well represented by Bob Balaban as
the Hollywood producer of the "Charlie Chan" films, Ryan
Phillippe as a young man who pretends to be a vale but later reveals
himself to be an actor researching for a role, Maggie Smith as the
snobbish and quite old fashioned Countess of Trentham, and Jeramy
Northam as celebrity Ivor Novello. The servants include Alan
Bates as Jennings, a man still filled with shame from a previous
act; Helen Mirren as Mrs. Wilson, the perfect servant who has many
secrets which she is hiding; Eileen Atkins as Mrs. Croft, the
kitchen supervisor; and Kelly Macdonald as Mary, servant to the
Countess of Trentham, who really serves as one of the central
characters in this collection of wonderful stars. The plot
gets moving along when one of the people in the household is
murdered, turning everyone into a suspect. Inspector Thompson
(Stephen Fry) is called in to investigate the murder, and brings
some hilarious physical comedy with him.
"Gosford
Park" is a film about many things. It deals with the
separation of classes, the lives led by the aristocrats upstairs and
the maids and butlers and valets downstairs. The murder which
occurs is really the least important piece of the plot. The
most interesting piece involves Sir William being accused of
fathering several children by his factory workers, only to have the
babies taken to orphanages. This piece of the plot is central
to the storyline and the most heartbreaking throughout. And,
though each and every actor in this film gives a unique and cultured
performance, there are three performances in particular that are
worthy of mentioning, two of which were recognized by both the
Golden Globes and Oscars: (1) Maggie Smith as the Countess of
Trentham, (2) Helen Mirren as Mrs. Wilson, and (3) Jeramy Northam as
Ivor Novello. Ryan Phillippe is delightful in his duel roles
as servant and actor--he is becoming quite enjoyable to watch
onscreen. The relationship between Mrs. Wilson and Mrs. Croft
is interesting to observe, and the ending of the film sheds more
light on that subject. However, unlike most of Altman's films,
the characters in "Gosford Park" do not all fit together
in a neat and tidy ball. Most of the characters in this film
serve merely as a backdrop for the underlying themes and plotlines.
For instance, Lord Stockbridge (Charles Dance) and George (Richard
E. Grant) were characters that serve no real purpose in the film,
though they are enjoyable to watch. With this film, Altman was
not concerned with how the characters fit together, rather with how
the characters came together and evolved. While Maggie Smith's
character does not change throughout the film, Helen Mirren's
character and Alan Bates' character undergo real, complex changes.
As I
stated earlier, this film deserves to win each and every award for
which it is nominated. Both Maggie Smith and Helen Mirren are
nominated for Best Supporting Actress, so I will unfortunately have
to say that Helen Mirren deserves the award slightly more for her
heartbreaking portrayal of a woman clinging onto what little she has
left in the world. I am disappointed now that neither Northam
or Phillippe were nominated for Best Supporting Actor--maybe even
Michael Gambon also. Even if "Lord
Of The Rings" wins all of the awards, I will know in my
heart that "Gosford Park" should have. It is so good
it drips with perfection. There was not a single aspect of
this film that I did not enjoy. Robert Altman is only getting
better with age, and when he is gone, Hollywood will never ever be
the same again.
-- Billy
Ray
( 4 pops out of 4 pops )
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about this film with other Popkorn Junkies |
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Other Junkie's
opinions.....
Matt
( 1 1/2 out of 4 pops )
I'm
probably part of the minority here, but I thought this movie was long,
boring and incredibly talky. It's like watching a boring college
professor give a lecture: You know whatever he's teaching you can
be fun and exciting, but he delivers it in such a deadpan, monotonous
fashion that you can't keep your eyes open! There are a couple
million characters, and I couldn't care for any of them--except for
maybe Maggie Smith's. She doesn't exactly deserve an Oscar, but I
commend her for bringing in a few desperately needed laughs. I've
never seen any of Altman's previous work, so I have no comparisons, but
watching this movie I didn't see a bit of genius. Anyone who has
read a book on Screenwriting should know that audiences DO NOT WANT TO
SEE TALKING HEADS!! There are exceptions, but it often applies,
especially when the dialogue isn't funny or interesting. All these
characters do is talk, talk, talk! Maybe I have to be English to
understand and appreciate the humor; maybe not. You be the judge.
But I was bored out of my mind!
Mike ( 3 out of 4 pops )
"Gosford Park" contains one of the largest ensemble of great
acting shown in film. I don't have space to list all the memorable
performances by all the actors involved, but the acting and what the
actors say are the main reasons to see this film. This is
basically Altman's take on the PBS series Upstairs/Downstairs and he
succeeds to a certain point making this an entertaining film. The
way in which Altman moves this large cast in and out of scenes is pretty
amazing, it all looks totally natural and not scripted. On the
downside, there isn't enough time to get to know all the characters to
the necessary degree. Plus, there isn't enough biting and clever
satire that this film craves for. In conclusion, I would recommend
this film but it's not up there with Altman's best.
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