Set during the 1930s, the film follows James Stevens (Anthony Hopkins), a proper English butler to the doltish Lord Darlington, who sacrificed body and soul to service in the years leading up to World War II and later realizes too late how misguided his loyalty was to his lordly employer.
10 February 1958, Cranleigh, Surrey, England, UK
1928, Hendon, Middlesex, England, UK
4 April 1923, Wem, Shropshire, England, UK
31 December 1937, Margam, Port Talbot, West Glamorgan, Wales, UK
6 February 1912, Clerkenwell, London, England, UK
15 April 1959, Paddington, London, England, UK
24 January 1930, Wanganui, New Zealand
3 October 1973, Hamilton, Bermuda
1938, Guernsey, Channel Islands, UK
1953, Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England, UK
November 25, 1944 in Denby Dale, West Yorkshire, England, UK
13 May 1946, Rugby, Warwickshire, England, UK
15 July 1963, London, England, UK
9 September 1960, Hammersmith, London, England, UK
1951, Carshalton, Surrey, England, UK
3 April 1940, Kiel, Germany
5 August 1933, Bishops Lydeard, Somerset, England, UK
February 07, 2016
Just gets better with age.February 09, 2006
Who else but Merchant Ivory to give the big-screen treatment to Ishiguro's Booker Prize-winning novel about class, fascism and the stiff upper lip?May 20, 2003
Here's a film for adults. It's also about time to recognize that Mr. Ivory is one of our finest directors, something that critics tend to overlook because most of his films have been literary adaptations.February 11, 2008
The actors keep this interesting, but as a story it drifts and rambles.May 12, 2001
What do you call filmmakers who make literary entertainment box office in the age of Beavis and Butt-bead? Try miracle workers.February 11, 2008
Though it offers a host of fine performances in a smoothly crafted, adult drama of unfulfilled love, it lacks the cumulative dramatic impact of the team's best work.December 23, 2006
The narrative structure (long flashbacks, letters) is awkward but the actors (Anthony Hopkins and Emma Thompson in top form) attention to detail is meticulous and piercing considering how muted the emotions are.February 11, 2008
Merchant-Ivory's best film by a mile.December 28, 2008
Moves rather slowly, but the actors and their understated chemistry keep the film riveting, building to a climax that is absolutely heartrending.September 24, 2005
First time I saw it, it destroyed me. Subsequent viewings have not improved my condition.February 11, 2008
All the meticulousness, intelligence, taste and superior acting that one expects from Merchant Ivory productions have been brought to bear.January 01, 2000
A subtle, thoughtful movie.