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    		•

    FILMS

    Gosford Park (2001)
  • Starring Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon, Kristin Scott Thomas, Camilla Rutherford, Charles Dance, Geraldine Somerville, Tom Hollander, Natasha Wightman, Jeremy Northam, Bob Balaban, James Wilby, Claudie Blakley, Laurence Fox, Trent Ford, Ryan Phillippe

  • Directed by Robert Altman

    • I'm not very good at figuring out murders in murder-mystery stories. I am easily duped by motive and opportunity. But I'm not entirely convinced that the murder that takes place in Gosford Park can be figured out by the audience.

    The long and the short of the story is this: A bunch of rich Englishmen and women (some stuffy, some less so) leave the hustle and bustle of the city to holiday in the country at rich friend's manor. They all bring their personal valets and maids and butlers and housekeepers and attendants because these people (the valets and maids) make the other people (rich bastards) feel important. That, and the rich people seem not to be able to do anything for themselves except bitch about how poor the service is and how insolent their servants are.

    It should come as no surprise, then, that one of the rich people ends up getting murdered. If I were one of the servants, I'd killed the lot of them.

    The most interesting parts of this movie have nothing to do with this murder-mystery plot. In fact, most of the characters almost seem to consider the murder as something incidental, something that has happened to someone else, something that may ruin their entertainment for the weekend, instead of the very serious matter of a man's death in which they are currently involved. The fact that there's a murderer in their midst does nothing more than make them giddy that they finally have something exciting to talk about.

    My favorite moments in the film are the behind-the-scenes in the servants quarters. I could relate, after a fashion. One summer I worked at a ranch in Wyoming that catered to rich people who wanted to play cowboy for a week. They'd play golf, shoot shotguns, ride horses (wearing fancy chaps and fine leather-tooled gloves), and, in the evenings, stroll into the dining room and drink $100 bottles of Merlot. Right, real cowboys.

    In any case, it was a lot of fun for the hired help such as myself to run around behind the scenes and quietly mock the guests, while stealing bits of their five-star food in the kitchen. The way we figured it: It gotta clean up after your crap, I'm getting some of that filet mignon. (Not to worry, we didn't steal off the plate. I was friends with the chief and he always made sure there was enough for the kitchen help.)

    But the principle is the same in this film as it was for me at the ranch: The rift in station and social rank created resentment for everyone. The fortunate complain of the ingratitude of those who serve them. The unfortunate hate having to justify themselves to those above them.

    And this rift is the best part of Gosford Park. To be honest, I think Altman could've excised the murder plot out of the script and, as far as I'm concerned, had a completely watchable movie. Perhaps a little bit boring, and it would have to be called, A Weekend In The Country With Stuffy Rich Folk and the Servants Who Hate Them. It might've even sold a few tickets.

    As far as the acting goes, it was all well done—though Ryan Phillipe stands out a bit. And I'm not sure if this is a good thing or not. It's not that he didn't do a good job, he did. I just feel that perhaps the role would've been a little better suited towards a lesser-known actor. He seemed too famous for the part, I guess. And I'm not 100% sure that what I'm writing even makes sense.

    And one last thing: There are a butt-load of people in this film and they all have names you won't remember and servants who's names you won't remember. I don't remember a single name from this film. As I'm watching it, I just think, "that's the guy who owns the house" and "that's the guy who's a movie director" and "that's the maid who belongs to that really rich bitch," etc., etc.