*** Official "GOSFORD PARK" Discussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[Janna S]

PhilipG: Don't miss "McCabe and Mrs. Miller" if you are catching up on Altman

Craig/Michael: I fell asleep in FOTR and I have yet to stay awake through all of The Matrix - Fishburne shows up and WHAM! I'm off to Noddingland.

rich_d: Food and clothing - a true woman's movie!

 

[Allen Hirsch]

PhilipG-

also try Nashville and Cookie's Fortune - they're two of the better Altman films, after Gosford Park and MASH, IMHO, of course.

 

[Brian W.]

Hmm, I saw this last night, and I really didn't enjoy most of it. But that could be partly because I'd just come from seeing "In the Bedroom" (which I loved) and I was tired. Or it could be the bag lady who wandered into the theater half an hour into the picture and sat there talking to herself in the front row on and off during the movie. (I went and got the ushers, but she she saw them come in and shut up while they were there, so they didn't remove her.)

I don't know, I felt it just meandered pointlessly on and on. I thought it would have worked better as a stage play. I thought the dialogue was hard to understand, both because of the sound quality and the accents. It picked up a little after the murder. The scream made me jump (but that's because I thought it was the bag lady screaming -- seriously, LOL). And I loved the ending, especially Helen Mirren's speech about being a maid:



"I'm a good maid. I'm not only good, I'm the best. I know what they want BEFORE they want it."

That gave me chills. I did have a little trouble figuring out the end, though I see from an earlier posting I was correct. Did they come right out and say it and I just got distracted, or was it just strongly implied?

I'm ashamed to say I have't seen "Nashville" or "MASH." I'll have to check them out. But, honestly, I haven't seen a Robert Altman film I've liked yet, though I think all I've seen are "The Player" and "Pret-a-Porter," so I'm probably missing some good ones.

 

[Mark-W]

I could tell you all the reasons why I think this
film should win the Best Picture Oscar, but there
is only so much bandwidth at this forum
LOVED THIS FILM
One particularly nice touch is the inclusion of
Ivor Novello, who was the actor who starred in
what is considered Alfred Hitchcock's "breakthrough"
film: The Lodger.
One very nice thing about this inclusion is that
Ivor Novello was also openly gay, and by
not metioning that in the film, Altman leaves the
audience to figure out for themselves all they
need to know about the dynamics between
the Charlie Chan filmmaker, the sexually indiscriminate,
Ryan Phillipe character, and Ivor.
Birds of a feather flock together, indeed?
This film is clearly meant as a drawing room comedy
with a bit of social class and rules drama tossed in.
I love Helen Mirren in it, and the film opens up like
a sweet fruit that only gets more delicious the more
you peel away the layers.
Mark