Downton Abbey (Michael Engler, 2019) wr. Julian Fellowes; Michelle Dockery, Tuppence Middleton, Maggie Smith, Matthew Goode, Hugh Bonneville, Jim Carter; release 20 September
The continuing story of the Crawley family, wealthy owners of a large estate in the English countryside in the early 20th century.
I enjoyed every minute of this, just like every other viewer who watched all of the TV series. The central element of the plot was implausible, but I guess a movie needed to have something special about its story, rather than just be four more episodes about daily life in a stately home.
Kate Stables, in Sight&Sound: "Anyone seeking potent big-screen analgesia in these troubled times need look no further than the cosy, highly crafted escapism of the Downton Abbey movie. Creator Julian Fellowes’s ITV period melodrama provided a similarly comforting, nostalgic distraction from the Great Recession during its wildly successful 2010-15 run. The historian Simon Schama may have damned it as a “steaming, silvered tureen of snobbery”, but the aristo-soap antics of the Earl of Grantham’s family and servants built a vast and loyal international following."
Garry Gillard | reviews | New: 8 February, 2020 | Now: 12 February, 2020