Gosford Park (2001) on Netflix
In 1932, Sir William McCordle and Lady Sylvia host a shooting party at Gosford Park, their English country estate. A murder under the roof turns every guest and servant into a suspect.
- Netflix3.5/5
- IMDb7.2/10103,494 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes87%
Trailer
Plot summary
For a weekend of shooting in 1932, the McCordle household fills with guests and their personal servants. Lady Sylvia's sisters Louisa and Lavinia arrive with their husbands, Lord Stockbridge and Commander Anthony Meredith, along with Lady Constance Trentham, the actor Ivor Novello and the American producer Morris Weissman. The Hon. Freddie Nesbitt and his wife Mabel are also among the guests. Below stairs, housekeeper Mrs Wilson assigns the visiting staff their rooms while the cook, Mrs Croft, feeds the house. Housemaid Elsie teaches Lady Trentham's inexperienced maid, Mary MacEachran, the routines of service. A silver carving knife disappears after dinner, and a killing brings Inspector Thompson and Constable Dexter to the estate.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Gosford Park (2001)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- During production Stephen Frears acted as a standby director, ready to replace Robert Altman in case he was incapacitated, so that the film would receive insurance.
- The television series Downton Abbey, written and created by Julian Fellowes, was originally planned as a spin-off of Gosford Park, but was instead developed as a standalone property inspired by the film and set earlier, from 1912 to the mid-1920s.
- The film was shot with two cameras moving perpetually in opposite directions, which Richard E. Grant said meant none of the actors knew when the cameras were focused on them, so they had to stay completely in character and interact with everybody as close to real life as possible.
- Jude Law dropped out just before the shoot began and was replaced by Ryan Phillippe, while Kenneth Branagh and Robert Bathurst were tied down by scheduling conflicts; Alan Rickman, Joely Richardson and Judi Dench were also considered for roles.
- Robert Altman chose the British actor and writer Julian Fellowes to write the screenplay because Fellowes knew how country houses operated; Fellowes, who had never written a feature film before, got a phone call from Altman asking him to come up with some characters and stories.
- Patrick Doyle said a film score can take him up to six months to create, but Robert Altman asked him to write and compose the music for Gosford Park in less than five weeks.
- The film was originally called The Other Side of the Tapestry, but Robert Altman thought the title was awkward, so Julian Fellowes went looking through some books and came up with Gosford Park.
