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Review

Robert Altman travelled to England, collected the perfect cast, had the perfect script written and handed us a present we won't soon forget with Gosford Park. Based on an idea by Bob Balaban and Robert Altman, the story takes places entirely on one weekend at a British estate. Although the film is ostensibly a whodunnit involving the guests on a duck hunting weekend, a very strong emphasis is placed on the goings-on behind the scenes in the servants quarters. Altman is very interested in how the servants relate to one another and to their masters.

Among the guests are Ivor Novello (Northram) a real matinee idol known to be gay, but sexually ambiguous in the film, Morris Weisman (Balaban) a gay producer of Charlie Chan movies who has brought his sexually scheming "valet" Henry Denton (Ryan Phillippe looking simply delicious), and the Countess of Trentham (Maggie Smith in a film stealing comic role). Like Murder by Death and countless Agatha Christie stories, the murder takes place and all the guests are suspects. The bumbling inspector Thompson (Fry) arrives and shines absolutely no light into the true story which we learn through the ever-watchful eyes of the staff.

At 78-years-old, Robert Altman can still direct the pants off many a younger, hot shot director. The feat of steering such a massive, star-laden cast to tell a story of murder, luxury, money and class is a daunting one. Gosford Park is a marvelous film that succeeds with an agenda to entertain and enlighten.

Scott Cranin