Review of Gosford Park (2001) by Omar K — 30 Nov 2015

Period dramas seldom arouse the attentions of an audience in the way blockbusters do, by appealing to the masses with themes weâ??ve become accustomed to. And as the period drama may appear daunting to some with its lavish set décor and formally intimate dialogue, Robert Altmanâ??s Gosford Park advertised itself as a murder mystery interwoven within a period setting, a big change to what anybody would have expected. Born out of the influence of Agatha Christie, as well as the long-running Charlie Chan series of the 30â??s, Gosford Park is influenced heavily by murder mystery benchmarks, but that does not mean its period aura wonâ??t be felt, because I can safely say that nothing can overcome the period look, not even essentially this cinematic version of cluedo. Gosford Park focuses on the lives of both its masters and servants, where an amalgam of different people with diverse personalities, careers and ambitions intertwine under the same roof in a bid to solve the murder, but end up discovering something about themselves instead. One would have expected the murder to occur at the onset, or 20 minutes in, but after an hour, it finally does revealing itself to merely act as a tool to forward the charactersâ?? personas. It is a prolonged opening that allows for some back-story to the characters, and by characters, I mean everyone that resides in Gosford Park! And that gives the film such density and atmosphere because every hierarchal section of Gosford Park is investigated, making for an unsurprisingly hefty experience.

The trailer and the filmâ??s build-up create this cryptically suspenseful feel about the place, but as the murder is committed, the murder kind of relinquishes its suspenseful grip on us and dwindles in importance until the revelation right at the very end ceases to be of concern for us or even the characters for that matter. We are meant to see Gosford Park as a character focused film where the story functions as an expansion to the charactersâ?? personalities, people we are meant to see a narrative within. It may be misleading but Robert Altman loves his characters, and wants them to consistently drive the story where their needs requires it to, constructing an extremely slow and old-fashioned narrative. But, that is the appeal of Gosford Park for it harks back in story, character and set design to a time where this was blockbusting stuff.

Gosford Park is the epitome of the period genre, beautifully crafting the Gosford Park estate so that every inch of the interior is a vast and luxurious historical wasteland of imbalance where two different ranks of society coexist. And in those ranks, an ensemble cast of Maggie Smith, Kristin Scott Thomas, Charles Dance, Tom Hollander, Bob Balaban, Clive Owen, Emily Watson, Derek Jacobi, Richard E. Grant and Stephen Fry fill the mansion. They are all fantastic in their performances, but three cast members have to be singled out for individual acclaim. Michael Gambon gives such a dominating performance of pure acrimony and pomposity that his demise lets us rejoice that the murder finally arrives. Helen Mirren is the complete opposite of Gambon, quietly and perhaps slightly eerily creeps her way through the corridors and house keeps more than just the estate, but a secret embedded within the fabrics of her worn out appearance. But it is American Ryan Phillippe who travels the Atlantic and dominates the British in their own playground. You may recognise him from American teen films such as Cruel Intentions and I Know What You Did Last Summer, but upon hearing his remarkable Scottish accent, you may believe his portrayal enough to mistake him for Phillippeâ??s Scottish doppelganger, until he masterfully deceives us all.

Gosford Park is a strictly mature film, with lush dialogue and complex relationships, so it comes as no surprise that it is restricted to senior viewers, but the now completed Downton Abbey was born out of Gosford Parkâ??s critical success, and look at the popularity of that, so audiences should try, at least once, the period plushness Gosford Park proposes.

The Verdict:

Gosford Park fails to make the most of its delicious murder mystery setup, but in its place offers a character-fixated story that breeds some staggering performances from Helen Mirren and Ryan Phillippe in particular.

â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â??â?? 6/10.