The Downton Abbey movies have proven that their target audience already has a working knowledge of who these characters are and their motivations. Newbies need less of a crash course and more of a Venn diagram to establish the connections.
The best thing I can say about the third and supposed last chapter, Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale, is that it brings a sense of closure to the series that hardcore fans will find satisfactory enough and will be happy to take the ride through the lives of these intricate characters that they’ve come to love and adore.
Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McGovern are back as Lord and Lady Crawley, the owners of the Grantham House, who have to contend with their daughter Mary (Michelle Dockery), who is divorced from her husband, which causes all kinds of dramatic events.
Lord and Lady Crawley are taken aback when Mary suggests they sell their home as a way of making some sort of profit after the Wall Street Crash has affected their financial situation. Not to mention there’s a new man in Mary’s life, a potentially shady financial advisor named Gus Sambrook (Alessandro Nivola). He has a fling with Mary and threatens her with blackmail about their affair if she doesn’t accept his various proposals.
Paul Giamatti costars as Harold Levinson, a businessman whom Gus saved from financial ruin. Now, he has to find a way to repay his debt to Gus while also being a busybody at the Grantham House. Giamatti acquits himself pretty effectively for most of his scenes.
One problem I have with the Downton Abbey movies is the overabundance of characters and having to keep up with their individual storylines. The series, as well as the movies, are very much soap operas with endless amounts of drama and developments that even the most rabid fans would need to pay very close attention to.
My recommendation for the film is more about the characters and the level of charm and wit the actors bring to their roles, rather than their individual storylines.
The actors once again easily inhabit their roles with what they require and remain consistent with what the fans of these movies expect. Bonneville, McGovern, Dockery, and the rest of the cast have moments of humorous and poignant dialogue that are convincing. Fans will embrace it as cinematic comfort food.
The Grand Finale works as a love letter to its fans and has just enough of an entertainment factor to keep it afloat. I, for one, was satiated by the end.
