Review of Gosford Park (2001) by Paul J — 11 Jul 2011
Altman is undeniably one of the better auteurs of his generation, and even in the midst of senility he was able to direct a masterful, if not overwrought murder-mystery film. I would start off by praising the attention to detail and the intricacy with which the film is directed and the narrative unfolds.
Altman goes through the motions, and depicts the relationship between the servants of the manor and the rich, snobby guests to the utmost of detail. Yet at the same time, it is all this time wasted on this minutiae that really served to alienate me from the film.
It was unbearably boring at times, and I had to watch it in two sittings. The ensemble cast is stellar, as is usually the case with most Altman films, and that coupled with the outstanding (Academy Award Winning) screenplay really elevated the film in my eyes, in the face of the dullness that seemed pervades many parts of the piece.
He could very well have cut at least a half an hour from the running time by eliminating a lot of the superfluous footage, but he prefers to work on an epic scale, much to my dismay.
This review of Gosford Park (2001) was written by Paul J on 11 Jul 2011.
Gosford Park has generally received very positive reviews.
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