“Gosford Park” (2001)

Gosford Park

Grade: A-

Director Robert Altman is at his best when working with large ensembles in very specific settings, so it’s quite a surprise that he didn’t attempt a British-style period piece until so late in his career (Gosford Park is his 33rd feature film). The wait was worth it: Gosford Park is an exquisite whodunnit with wonderful old-time vibes, proving that the 76-year-old filmmaker was still one of cinema’s most talented artists.

Directing:

With a butler’s eye for detail, Altman gathers a colorful cast of wealthy Britons for a hunting party at a palatial estate in 1932. Just like Jean Renoir’s masterpiece, The Rules of the Game, it’s only a matter of time before someone gets killed. Both films are darkly comic explorations on class, with every character receiving equal shine, from the upper-class Lords and Ladies who fuss over illicit affairs and inheritances, to the servants and maids below the stairs who have their own interconnected trials and tribulations. In true Agatha Christie fashion, the house patriarch is murdered — twice? — and everyone’s a suspect, though Altman is less concerned with the mystery and more interested in simply evoking a bygone era.

Alfred Hitchcock would’ve filled a story like this with suspense, but Altman prefers to focus on atmosphere. Both, however, know how to turn the viewer into an active voyeur: we see the characters’ secret lives from behind closed doors and below spiral staircases, the camera snaking its way through the labyrinthine manor, somehow retaining a calm and comforting demeanor despite all the secrecy. With precise period details capturing our (and Altman’s) imagination, this sumptuous exercise in style improbably becomes a “hangout” movie. It’s great fun to be a guest at Gosford Park, murder notwithstanding.

Acting:

Typical of Altman, the ensemble cast is very large, with nearly 20 principal actors and actresses given prominent roles. It’s often hard to discern who is who — and whom they are all sleeping with — but that’s acceptable once you understand the murder mystery plot is secondhand. Naturally, there will be characters who don’t make an impression, but there are twice as many that do. Great performances from Clive Owen, Michael Gambon, Maggie Smith, Kelly Macdonald, Helen Mirren and Kristin Scott Thomas, among others.

Writing:

Gosford Park is a well-crafted mystery, directly influenced by Clue and directly influencing Knives Out, but unlike both those films, the mystery itself feels unimportant. Yes, the plot twists toward the end of Gosford Park are fulfilling, especially when considering how subtle the clues leading up to them were, but — as said earlier — the mystery is not the point. Notice how nobody seems to really care that Sir William McCordle was killed, or that there is a murderer walking among them?

Julian Fellowes’ Oscar-winning screenplay, “based on an idea” by Altman and actor Bob Balaban (who plays Morris Weissman, one of two Americans spending the weekend at Gosford Park), is all about crafting a rich atmosphere that is true to the time period. The overlapping dialogue, the interconnected characters, the understated backstories — everything adds together to create a rich ambiance meant for captivation rather than investigation. Fellowes deserved his Academy Award for how accurately he captures upper-class England in the early ’30s.

Music:

Scottish composer Patrick Doyle perfectly and playfully matches the mood of the movie: semi-classical semi-jazz with popular (not “pop”) sensibilities. It’s clear someone has been studying the Ray Noble songbook. Or maybe — probably — Ivor Novello is a more apt comparison. After all, a fictionalized version of the matinee mega-star (played by Jeremy Northam) is one of Gosford Park’s many guests, and several of his songs (covers by Northram) feature throughout the film, with the opening instrumental “Waltz of My Heart” and the closing ballad “The Land of Might-Have-Been” being the standouts.

Ending (SPOILERS):

The two twists at the end are satisfying and surprisingly emotional: one of the new servants (Owen) is actually the son of the head housekeeper (Mirren), the latter who poisoned Sir McCordle (Gambon) because she knew the former was planning to stab him. It’s safe to assume that neither will be caught by the law and that both have finally found some form of moral catharsis and reckoning for McCordle’s lifetime of misdeeds. A secret family dynamic that is very sorrowful.

But what’s even sadder is that our weekend at Gosford Park has come to an end. Although the murder mystery contains relevant subtext about societal mores and workers’ rights, neither the murder nor the mystery is Altman’s prime motive for making this movie. Gosford Park is meant to be a fun bit of escapism, and the bittersweet sight of the 1924 Rolls Royce exiting the premises signifies the conclusion of our vacation.

“I know when they’ll be hungry, and the food is ready. I know when they’ll be tired, and the bed is turned down. I know it before they know it themselves.” — Mrs. Wilson

Why Gosford Park gets an A-

Because Gosford Park is such a pleasant, relaxing, “good vibes” film, and because Altman also treats us as active voyeurs who must piece together the murder mystery clues for ourselves, it can sometimes be difficult to discern where we should focus our attention. Altman’s film is sometimes caught between the two modes, which ultimately prevents Gosford Park from being a Grade-A classic like his best works (e.g., Nashville, 3 Women). Still a damn good film with terrific acting and beautiful imagery, though.

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