Robert Altman's name alone is legend. Director of such films as
M*A*S*H and (hey,
y'all)
Nashville, it's a rarely contested statement that the man is a film-making
legend.
His latest gem features some of the best that
British film and stage have to offer, from the flawless
Maggie Smith (
The Prime of Ms. Jean Brodie,
Harry Potter and the Sorceror's Stone), to witty
Kelly McDonald (of
Trainspotting fame). Conceived by Altman and actor
Bob Balaban and penned by
Julian Fellowes, the movie has been nominated for a number of
Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and two Best Supporting Actress nods for Smith and
Helen Mirren.
Set over a hunting weekend at a country manor house (from which the film takes its name), this twisty, rich narrative follows two paths. Although the movie is, ostensibly, a
whodunit, that's not at all what it's about. The classic
Murder Mystery becomes a mere backdrop for an entirely different
flavour of film. It's a movie about
class, the kind you're born into and the kind that you do or do not posess. It's a movie about the
caste system that was still very much in place during the
1930s, when the setting takes place. It's about the casual cruelties that are inflicted under the banner of
propriety. From the
snobbery that shuns a lady who didn't bring a maid for the weekend to the simple failure of, by and large,
everyone to recognize the servants as individuals or even things remotely resembling people. A great many reviewers have compared the movie to the 1970s
BBC tv series
Upstairs, Downstairs, too.
Cast
(
Above Stairs)
Micheal Gambon as Sir William McCordle
Kristin Scot Thomas as Lady Sylvia McCordle
Camilla Rutherford as Isobell McCordle
Maggie Smith as Constance, Countess of Trentham
Charles Dance as Lord Raymond of Stockbridge
Geraldine Somerville as Lady Louisa of Stockbridge
Tom Hollander as Lieutenant Anthony Meredith
Natasha Wightman as Lady Lavinia Meredith
James Willby as The Honorable Freddy Nesbitt
Claudie Blakley as Mabel Nesbitt
Laurence Fox as Lord Rupert Standish
Trent Ford as Jeremy Blond
Jeremy Northam as Ivor Novello
Bob Ballaban as Morris Weissman
(
Below Stairs)
Alan Bates as Jennings
Helen Mirren as Mrs. Wilson
Eileen Atkins as Mrs. Croft
Emily Watson as Elsie
Richard E. Grant as George
Theresa Churcher as Bertha
Sophie Thompson as Dorothy
Kelly MacDonald as Mary Macreachran
Clive Owens as Robert Parks
Ryan Phillipe as Henry Denton
Stephen Fry as Inspector Thompson
Ron Webster as Constable Dexter
Without giving too much away, the plot runs as follows. The core of the family is the
McCordle's, with William as head of the clan. His wife, Sylvia, is one of three sisters, any one of which could have married William (they drew cards). Her other two sisters (Louisa and Lavinia) are present this weekend as well, and there seems to be some affectionate rivalry between Sylvia and Louisa, each of whom rather regrets their choice of husband. Sir William apparently supports most of his friends and relations, with an
allowance to some and business investments in others. For some undisclosed reason, he's decided to withdrawn this financial support from most of them, which, of course, they're desperate to stop.
Below stairs, they gossip about their employers, work literally
from sunup to sundown, and run their lives as best they can around the influence that those
above exert. On this particular weekend, they're filled to overflowing with the visiting
entourages of the lordly guests (each of whom will be called by the name of their employer. For example; Mary
Macreachran becomes
Trentham-to whom she is employed as a lady's maid-for all intents and purposes), Mrs. Wilson and Mrs. Croft
wage private war on one another, and one of the best moments of the film comes while the house staff arranges itself around their dinner table according to their employers's standings (a countess ranks higher than a ladyship and so two maidservant's switch chairs). A
poignant moment out of time occurs while the servants cluster in dark rooms, hover in stairwells and around corners and at doorways, and listen to visiting film star
Ivor Novello (who actually did exist and write the songs that Jeremy Northam sings so beautifully) sing at the piano, while their masters loll about in shining dresses and tuxedos, secure in the light.
And of course, there is a
murder.
I kinda love imdb.com.