In essence this film takes a look at English society at the tail end of the Great Depression. We get a close-up look at the upper classes, and their numerous servants, as a group of people gather at a country estate for a weekend of shooting and gossip. The film heads briefly into Agatha Christie murder-mystery territory, without devolving into that completely. Much more a slice-of-life film than a great story.
137 minutes, No persons under 13
Comedy, Mystery, Drama
Ian Douglas: I see my rating is way out of line with the foreign media... and since the script won an Oscar, maybe
I just missed the point again.. Anyway, on the good side, yes, there are good performances, with Maggie Smith and Stephen Fry
playing it way over the top and strictly for laughs. The look at past society was interesting, especially the upstairs-downstairs
divide and inherent snobbery everywhere. However, I was bored to tears due to nothing of consequence happening. I
stuck it out in the hope that it would improve, and thought it was, after the murder, but that plot thread did not go
in the expected direction either... I suppose an older audience might find this brilliant, but youngsters will likely walk
out in boredom.
