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Main Cast Reviews  Maggie Smith, Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael Categories  Drama Release Date  20th Sep 2019 7.5

Review

This movie continues the story of the "Crawley" family and is set in the early 20th century. The Crawley's are wealthy owners of a large estate in the English countryside. The outstanding cast includes: Maggie Smith as Violet Crawley, Dowager Countess of Grantham, Michelle Dockery as Lady Mary Crawley, Laura Carmichael as Lady Edith Crawley, Tuppence Middleton as Lucy, Sophie Mcshera as Daisy Mason, Elizabeth Mcgovern as Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham, Allen Leech as Tom Branson, Imelda Staunton as Lady Bagshaw, Joanne Froggatt as Anna Bates, Stephen Campbell moore as Untitled, Raquel Cassidy as Phyllis Baxter, Penelope Wilton as Isobel Crawley, Hugh Bonneville as Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham, Geraldine James as Untitled and Phyllis Logan as Mrs. Hughes.


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The movie begins with someone writing a letter and sealing it with a special stamp. They send it off to another location. Then we cut to a train leaving a city. Someone is taking the letter on the train.

"A man on a bike delivers the letter to a large estate. This big estate is called Downton Abbey. The letter was from buckingham palace. It says the King And Queen are coming to stay to Downton! This makes everybody excited at Downton. Innovative way to start a movie. We are told exactly what the movie will be about"

The staff start to prepare. "Blennin, Chatswood, Andall... The King and Queen would have visited the best houses in the land" says Mr Carson (Downton's Manager). He feels the pressure. The chefs of Downton are also feeling the pressure. Their food has to be perfection!

"The Downton Abbey Estate looks beautiful from the outside. It's many rooms and decor (from that period) are also impressive. The dress sense of the men and women inside is also very stylish. Suits with bow ties and fine gowns for the women"

The waiter staff manager is also excited. "I want every surface in this house to gleam!" says the head of the maids. A man from Downton does an errand and tells some other interested person that the King and Queen are coming.

"Mr Wilson, the Kings Royal Butler, visits Downton. The Butler of Downton explains the plan to have Mr Wilson in power to the maids and waiters in a very strict fashion. It appears that Downton Abbey was the place to be back then. You can imagines that the staff were very orderly and their customer service had to be perfection"

Two old ladies chat about the upcoming stay of the King and Queen. One of them is Violet Crawley (one of the owners of Downton Abbey). The staff had to kick customers out to make room for the royal visitors. The head butler Barrow says that he will give up his position. A supplier Mr Bakewell is excited that he is involved with the visit. Downton has a few more visitors (non royal).

"The new plumber Mr Selleck arrives. Mr Selleck flirts with a maid, he gets to work. I must say most of the ladies (staff and guests) in this movie are very elegant and beautiful. Their gowns are very stylish."
Mr Selleck has some tea with the maids. They joke around. But the manager tells him to leave, he finishes up. We then cut to the preparation of the dishes etc. A french cook arrives. Then the organisation of the food begins. Violet Crawley has a chat to her friends about London.

Carson chats to the Butler of the King who doesn't like him. The Butler doesn't want him to intefere. Then there is a thunderstorm. Two men go for a drink. The Man whose job it is to dress the King and another gentlemen from Downton.

"The weather improves and it's the day of the visit! The King and Queen arrive! They say hello to Lady Grantham. The waitstaff bow their heads. The waitstaff is tremendously nervous as you would be. What a moment for them. I really liked this scene. The King and Queen appear to be very relaxed and humble."

Mr Wilson royal butler is angry that the head of the maids and Mr Carson are still interfering. Mr Wilson calls back their food. The other staff are angry. Then there is a parade. A man walks around with a gun. It was the suspicious man that Tom (from Downton) recognised . That man gets tackled by Tom and then gets arrested. There is a lady there that recognises Tom. They both get questioned. Then they go for a walk together.

"The angry wait staff and cooks are told that tonight they (change of plans) will cook and serve dinner to the King and Queen. But they need to get rid of Mr Wilson the royal butler and the imported French Chef! The angry french chef goes for a nap, just what they wanted! They lock him up in his room hehehe. I loved this scene. The cheeky staff would do anything to work on this day"
Tom goes for a walk around the grounds and finds the Queen's daughter crying. She is having marital issues and he consoles her. The picturesque outside grounds of Downton Abbey are beautiful through out the movie.

Tom tells her he finds the Crawleys honourable even though there is some tension sometimes between them. Mr Wilson the Royal Butler gets a phone call that he has been assigned elsewhere. Lady Violet Crawley chats with a royal woman. The old butler tells everybody that they shall not detect that the Royal Butler is not leading them. Another royal woman is having a baby but her spouse will be travelling at that time and so she is sad.

The staff don't wake up the crazy french chef and he is still locked inside his room. The Queens dresser ended up being a thief! She was caught by another Downton manager stealing Downton ornaments. There are a few laughs through out this movie. Mr Carson now is in charge as Mr Wilson and French Chef are missing!

"The elaborate serving of the food and table organisation and ornaments looks majestic. The whole scene where the staff serves the King and Queen was shot to perfection. Mosley the waiter then admits that it was not the Royal Butler/Mr Wilson or the French Chef that prepared the meal. He says proudly that it was the Downton staff"

Two elderly ladies have an argument. One of them says her heir will be her maid. A royale woman gets fitted with a new dress. Lady Violet Crawley wants to throw in the towel and sell Downton. "I want everything to stop being such a struggle" she says. It must have been hard to run Downton. Tom kisses that lady, Lucy Smith, he went for a walk with. She's leaving.

The staff end up celebrating and toast the King and Queen. The man who ruined the steam room admits that he did it for the love of his woman. He was jealous at the visiting plumber. Ms Lorton the thief gives back the things she stole. The waitstaff managers have tea and say that the dinner went well! They are all smiles.

The majesties are getting ready to leave. Mr Talbort arrives and runs up the stairs and chats to Mary. Tom does a favour to the Queens daughter and tells her to stay with her husband. We cut to a ball. A violin orchestra plays constantly in the background. Lady Violet Crawley says she doesn't have long to live. She wants to pass down Downton Abbey to her daughter Cora. "So long as the house stands" says Cora. The live violin music here is sensational and adds to the majestic mood.

The girl that Tom likes is there. The dancing in this ball is majestic. Then Tom takes Lucy to a beautoful balcony and they continue to dance. Tom says about the royal visit "Well they've gone and Downton is still standing... 100 years from now Downton will still be standing". It's a fitting ending to the movie.

"Downton Abbey is an elegant movie about a royal visit to an old famous estate. I loved the fact that even though it was a drama they managed to squeeze in a few dialogue jokes and silly situations (like locking in the french chef hehe). It must have been hard to run such a professional estate and even more so when the King and Queen are coming! We are given access to the personalities that run Downton and I enjoyed that a lot"
The clothing design and interiors looked authentic for the era. The movie itself is a throw back to a time gone by. What an interesting and majestic 2hrs 2min.

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