Who Dunnit? (Who Dun WHAT, exactly?!?!)
Written: Aug 23 '05 (Updated Apr 11 '08)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Complex plot, excellent cast, oodles of period atmosphere
Cons: Not enough screen time for_some of_the stars, some will find_the number_of characters a_little overwhelming
The Bottom Line: An extremely good period drama that strays from the conventional murder mystery formula with good results.
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| captaind's Full Review: |
Gosford Park is your typical "who dunnit" murder mystery... except that, in many ways, it is anything but a typicla who dunnit murder mystery.
Featuring a cast absolutely loaded with star names, Gosford Park does indeed contain a murder, and there is a mystery surrounding who dunnit – but this is an extremely small part of the film, in fact it's almost a side point. The build up gives us a chance to see the tensions building between the different classes of people, the relationships between servants and their masters, warring families, business deals being made or broken, relationships being made or smashed, reputations being built or destroyed. There are many interesting characters in the film including a servant who is not at all who he seems, a distinguished lady bored of her life, an elderly gentleman whose values are not looked upon favourably by his peers, a lady who can't get enough attention, a young servant woman who can't get away from unwanted attention, a movie director, and many more. It's impossible to explain too much without giving away key plot elements, so I'll let you find them out for yourself.
The films strengths and weaknesses are actually the same things viewed from different perspectives – on the one hand, there are many stars and fine performances, which is obviously a good thing; but there a so many characters and stars that they tend to get crowded, some having very little screen time. (The stand out performance is undoubtedly by the excellent Richard E Grant as one of the higher ranking servants – even when he only walked across the screen without saying anything in one scene, he had such presence and charisma that he completely stole that scene from the other characters.) The sheer number of sub-plots could at times be rather dizzying, though this means that it is unlikely to suffer as much from repeated viewings as other similar films as you will no doubt notice something new each time. The film is complemented by some effective music, stunning period costumes, and some excellent cinematography.
Once the murder actually has been committed, enter Inspector Thompson (Stephen Fry). Though I like Fry and find him highly amusing, for some reason his entry into the film, obviously as a comic relief, jarred with the mood of the film and just didn't really work. The ending of the film wasn't all the satisfactory either, which prevents the film from being 5 star material. I did enjoy it and would watch it again at some time in the future though, and it's a very good choice if you want something a bit different (and, perhaps, even cerebral).
Some of the many stars in the film include:
Maggie Smith (Ladies In Lavender)
Michael Gambon (The Life Aquatic)
Kirsten Scott Thomas (The English Patient, The Horse Whisperer)
Jeremy Northam (The Net)
Stephen Fry (Wilde)
Clive Owen (King Arthur, Closer)
Helen Mirren (Calender Girls)
Richard E Grant (Scarlet Pimpernel [TV series], Bright Young Things)
Ryan Phillippe (Cruel Intentions, Crash [2005])
Tom Hollander (Maybe Baby, Enigma)
Other Details
Director: Robert Altman
Rated R for some language and brief sexuality (UK Rating: 15)
Runtime: 137 minutes (didn't seem too long)
Awards: Apart from an Oscar, Gosford Park won a staggering 26 further awards and 46 nominations from various associations.
Thanks for reading!
CaptainD
See also: Top Ten Movies of 2001
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See also my Top Ten Dramas list.
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Recommended:
Yes
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