Everyone has their guilty pleasures: chocolate, vodka, pimple-popping videos. For me, it’s British historical period dramas, and there’s one that well and truly trumps them all: Downton Abbey.
Charming Yorkshire accents, handsome gentlemen looking as dapper as ever in their tailored suits, and a wickedly sassy Maggie Smith: what more could you possibly ask for in a tv show? Well, more than six seasons would have been nice!
Downton Abbey’s mischievous creator Julian Fellowes brought audiences to their knees begging for more after airing the season finale on Christmas Day of 2015. And almost five years later, our wishes have finally been granted with the release of a Downton Abbey full feature-length film!
Set amongst majestic Downton Abbey itself in the peak of the roaring 20s, the new flick is a continuation of the television series yet can also be enjoyed as a stand-alone film by fans both new and old.
Paying homage to its roots, the film begins just as the show did: with a letter making its way from being hand penned on a desk in central London to being hand delivered by a butler to the privileged Crawley family. And low and behold, the contents of this particular letter spark the start of the film’s tumultuous storyline: King George V and Queen Mary are coming to visit Yorkshire, and the ever so prestigious Downton Abbey has the honour of hosting them overnight.
What ensues is two hours of scintillating scandals, exposing revelations and good old-fashioned tomfoolery. It’s game, set and match as the Downton Abbey staff are pitted against the royal housekeeping personnel in a bout of competitive chaos to determine who has the right to wait on the royal family. Maggie Smith makes a triumphant return with her unforgettable witty repartee and “frenemy” feuding antics with Baronness Merton Isobel Grey, whose character is injected with new life and sarcastic banter by none other than Penelope Wilton. Michelle Dockery continues to add depth and dimension to Lady Mary Crawley, as audiences explore her relationship with Downton Abbey itself (it’s so much more than just a building – it’s a character in and of itself!) and the future fate of the family legacy. Beloved characters such as the silently sultry Thomas Barrow (Rob-James Collier), ditsy Joseph Molesley (Kevin Doyle) and all-seeing Charles Carson (Jim Carter) also make a return, donning their coattails and penguin suits to join Daisy (Sophie McShera) and Mrs Patmore (Lesley Nicol) in the bustling basement staff quarters.
Longtime fans of the series: prepare to be swept away in a sea of nostalgia as you are reunited with characters (both beloved and despised) and welcomed home as you are ushered through those ever so familiar Abbey halls. Relive the memories of when you first delved into the world of Downton all over again, and why not introduce (or convert) someone new to the original show while you’re at it. After almost ten years since first going to air, Downton Abbey remains a timeless classic to this day, proving that British period dramas are guilty pleasures that well and truly never go out of style.
Five out of five stars!
Post a Comment