# 6: Gosford Park (2001)

Maggie Smith

as Constance Trentham

in

Gosford Park (2001)

 

Screentime: 20 minutes and 41 seconds* (16.2% of the film)

* I should note here that screentiming this performance was a bit of a nightmare, when I time any of Maggie's performances, whenever she is featured or heard contributes to her time, therefore if a scene obvious features her but the camera is NOT on her, then that doesn't include her screentime. Robert Altman's style here in Gosford Park is easing in and out of multiple conversations, so at many times you can *just* hear Maggie speaking or *just* see her to the left or right. Additionally there are sequences where her character is in the car, but she (the actor) isn't necessarily there. I decided to only include sequences where you can obviously see her through the windows of the car.

Robert Altman’s Gosford Park is a murder-mystery/drama/comedy about a group of British high society and their servants coming together to the Gosford Park estate for a weekend of shooting and socialising. The film focuses on the lives of probably 40 characters and the liaisons, secrets and resentments that leads to the murder of the man of the house late at night. A detective arrives on the scene to investigate and find answers as to who is guilty and what was the motive as the weekend comes to a close. 

One may think the film sounds like the typical Agatha Christie mystery, but the who-dunnit? theme really takes the backburner instead to focus more on the simultaneous storylines of the guests and workers. The script is wonderful and all the actors deliver and perform their individual subplots wonderfully. The film is a major ensemble piece and the cast is to die for: Dame Maggie, Helen Mirren, Emily Watson, Michael Gambon, Stephen Fry, Ryan Phillipe, Kristin Scott Thomas, Clive Owen, Kelly Macdonald, Alan Bates, Eileen Atkins and Kristin Scott Thomas. I don’t know if it’s just me but the whole Upstairs-Downstairs scenario is just so entertaining to watch, and for that I give the film:

FILM:

 

Maggie Smith’s character Constance Trentham opens and closes the film with her maid Mary arriving and leaving the estate. Smith is wonderful and hilarious as the bitchy and snobby woman who despite her lavish lifestyle is starting to suffer some financial issues. It seems the entire weekend she just lives off the free food and any form of gossip spreading from both upstairs and downstairs and this makes her character so delightful. She deservingly got nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress but it’s a rather low key role, she doesn’t get any Oscar scenes or breakdowns (unlike her co- nominee Helen Mirren) but she still stands out with those snarky comments or reactions. She’s a hoot and a natural for this type of comedy.

MAGGIE-METER:
 

(To her maid) "That settles it. Come back at half past eight. I'll get dressed. It's the greatest bore, of course, but I don't want to miss anything."