Having started watching Downton Abbey on PBS in 2011, it was a foregone conclusion that I’d show up for the franchise’s Grand Finale.  Even the minor misstep that was 2022’s A New Era couldn’t keep me away.  Since this movie will be the last time we’ll see these actors playing these characters, I felt duty bound to see them off into retirement.  As such, I’m happy to say that this film is an emotionally satisfying curtain call for the Granthams, their servants and everyone within their social sphere.  If this truly is a goodbye, it’s a satisfying one.

Given that this is the last episode of the Downton Abbey saga, it’s appropriate that the lives of the Granthams would once again be in total disarray over Lady Mary’s (Michelle Dockery) bad luck with men.  In the early going of the television series, the fate of the family hinged on whether she would marry cousin Matthew Crawley (Dan Stevens).  If Mary didn’t do her part to unite the two families, the Granthams would have been tossed out on their ear.  Fortunately, Mary and Matthew married and produced a male heir, ensuring that the Granthams would call Downton Abbey home for the foreseeable future.

After moving on from Matthew’s tragic death, Mary eventually married race car driver Henry Talbot (Matthew Goode) at the end of season six.  Unfortunately, their relationship proved to be a challenging one due to him always being elsewhere.  Mary strongly considered having an affair in A New Era but decided to stick it out.  Alas, The Grand Finale tells us that Mary’s loyalty was all for naught when she receives confirmation of her divorce from Henry via the morning’s post.  (I suppose that’s better than getting a breakup Post-It, as was the case for Carrie Bradshaw on Sex and the City.)

While divorce is commonplace in our day and age, it was scandalous for women in 1930s high society.  Mary’s situation becomes headline news in the papers, and she’s met by photographers when she arrives at a ball held by Lady Petersfield (Joely Richardson).  When word of Mary’s divorce spreads throughout the crowd, Petersfield promptly asks Mary to scram before she’s seen by members of the Royal Family.  This leads to a cringe-y series of events with the Grantham’s hiding under a staircase, Mary making a hasty exit while Lord Grantham (Hugh Bonneville) and Cora (Elizabeth McGovern) are forced to watch everyone else dance until they can leave.

Now that Mary has become persona non grata overnight, I don’t blame her for throwing caution to the wind.  Which she does spectacularly by having a fling with new arrival American Gus Sambrook (Alessandro Nivola), the handsome business partner of Cora’s brother Harold Levinson (Paul Giamatti).  Unfortunately for her, there’s more to Sambrook that meets the eye, and his motives for coming to Downton Abbey and seducing Mary are unscrupulous in nature.

The reason behind Harold and Gus’ transatlantic visit is due to Harold’s management of his and Lady Crowley’s estate back in the States.  The story is that Sambrook helped Harold avoid losing all of mother’s money in the Crash of 1929, but now needs to sell his mother’s house to pay off Sambrook, who will in turn get the rest of the money back.  Cora doesn’t like the smell of the arrangement and refuses, leaving her brother to twist in the wind.

While the issues involving Mary, Gus, Harold and Cora are being sorted out, the movie serves up plenty of other storylines in the interim.  Some are small, like Carson (Jim Carter) being unable to deal with retired life and intruding upon new head butler Andy’s (Michal Fox) responsibilities.  Mrs. Patmore (Lesley Nicol) is also retiring and passing the whisk over to Daisy (Sophie McShera).  Mr. Bates (Brendan Coyle) and Anna (Joanne Froggatt) have another child on the way.  Mr. Molesley (Kevin Doyle) is stressed out writing his latest screenplay, testing the patience of his wife Miss Baxter (Raquel Cassidy), who still serves as lady’s maid to Cora.  (If you’re drawing a blank on any of those characters, you may want to rewatch the previous two films.)

The other main storyline involves the county fair, and it’s a wonderful dissection of local politics.  After the passing of Lady Violet (Maggie Smith), the Dowager Countess, the title of “Grande Dame not to be messed with” falls upon Lady Merton (Penelope Wilton), who shows she’s up to the task.  Unhappy with the fair’s stewardship under council president Sir Hector Moreland (Simon Russell Beale), she recruits Daisy and Carson to the council to undermine Moreland’s authority.  Turns out that Lady Merton learned a thing or two about how to get one’s way from her longtime friend after all.

Similar to the previous Downton Abbey films, The Grand Finale also includes some flash.  Noel Coward (Arty Froushan) is brought in by way of former butler Thomas Barrow (Robert James-Collier) and his lover, actor Guy Dexter (Dominic West).  I appreciated how the film celebrates him while also deftly using him to tease out aspects of the other characters.  It’s a showy performance that also serves a purpose, showing how celebrity can be much more than an achievement.  If only the celebrities of today could wield their influence as wisely as this fictional character.

Recommendation

What I appreciate most about Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is how it emphasizes smaller, intimate moments between characters over spectacle and melodrama.  It recognizes that this will be the last moments we get to spend with these characters and puts their interactions front-and-center, which is what made the television series so endearing.  While the melodrama is entertaining and the spectacle is stylish, the little everyday interactions between the cast easily outweigh both.

In remaining true to the spirit of the franchise (it’s weird to refer to Downton Abbey as that, but it’s true), The Grand Finale indulges in some very soapy melodrama.  While the majority of the plot involves the repercussions of Lady Mary’s poor judgement, the adjacent subplots are given plenty of space to flourish.  There are at least a half-dozen subplots, with some getting significant screen time (Lady Merton taking charge of the local county fair) and others only lightly touched upon (the retirements of head butler Carson and cook Ms. Patmore).  Fellowes devotes time to all of the smaller, character-driven stories because he knows we’re grown fond of these characters and want to see that they’re doing well.

For both the television series and the films, it helped tremendously that everything was underpinned by such a superlative cast.   For a movie with at least thirty speaking parts, it’s remarkable that almost all of the actors get a moment in the spotlight.  For the returning regulars, Elizabeth McGovern (Lady Grantham), Sophie McShera (Daisy), Laura Carmichael (Lady Edith) and Jim Carter (Mr. Carson) shined.  I did get the feeling that Michelle Dockery (Lady Mary) and Allen Leech are relieved to put their characters behind them.

Among the relative newcomers, Dominic West relishes playing closeted actor Guy Dexter.  It’s unfortunate that Hollywood doesn’t make movies for the Douglas Fairbanks-inspired persona he’s created here.  Paul Giamatti has made a career out of making us empathize with prideful failures, and his turn as Harold fits squarely within his wheelhouse.  Watching him and McGovern playing brother and sister politely bickering over money was a masterclass of understated yet powerful dramatic acting.  In the movie’s showiest role, Arty Froushan is a scene-stealer as Noel Coward, portraying him as a card, irresistibly drawn to mischief and a keen observer of human behavior.  Most importantly, his performance always complimented the rest of the cast.

Of course, all of the actors are heavily indebted to screenwriter Julian Fellowes’ wonderful dialog.  Fellowes’ ear for nuanced conversation and witty repartee makes him one of the best working today, and is the reason why I’ve tuned into The Gilded Age on HBO Max.  Fellowes has a bit of fun this time around by having his on-screen surrogate Mr. Molesley grappling with whether the actors or the screenwriter is more important to a film.  He knows that the answer is “both” and includes everyone behind the camera.

Director Simon Curtis brings a cinematic eye to the proceedings and successfully takes Downton Abbey beyond its typically four-walled landscape into the world outside.  As is typical for this franchise, the film’s production design is unparalleled and cinematographer Ben Smithard captures all of the film’s sumptuous period details.  Anna Mary Scott Robbins’ costumes are exquisite.  Lastly, it wouldn’t be Downton Abbey without composer John Lunn’s iconic score.  Those soaring and melancholy strings still get to me after all these years.

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is precisely that, a joyful celebration of the characters who’ve been part of our lives for the past fourteen years.  Funny, nostalgic and sentimental, it’s a perfect farewell to the franchise.  Recommended.

Analysis

Two themes emerged while watching The Grand Finale.  The first is that a family that sticks together will survive the bad times.  When Lady Mary’s divorce forces her into hiding, several members of her family work to reintegrate her back into society.  Lady Merton insists that Mary give away the big prize at the county fair.  While this isn’t a huge honor, it reminds Mary’s neighbors that she’s still a good person who deserves their respect.  Mary’s mother Cora invites the neighbors over for dinner.  Although they all decline initially, it sets the stage for others to pitch in on Mary’s behalf.  Edith comes up with the idea to invite Noel Coward, knowing that the neighbors will come over to be in his company.  When Anna gets the word out via the lady’s maid network, the party is a huge success.  Upon leaving, guests remark to Cora that they never should have turned down the invitation in the first place.  In the end, Mary’s family has ensured that she will no longer be a pariah around time.

It was nothing short of remarkable when Edith chose to help Mary in her time of need instead of turning her back on her.  While Mary never withheld her withering criticism from anyone, she was often harsh towards Edith during her misfortunes.  I would have understood completely if Edith had a good laugh over her sister’s situation, told her to get herself out of her own mess and left with a heel-turn.  Instead, Edith showed that she’s the better person and chose to help out.  Regardless of what happened between them in the past, Mary will always be Edith’s sister and Edith couldn’t not come to her aid.  As the movie puts it, families must set aside their differences and come together during a crisis.

Then there’s the matter of Harold mismanaging his mother’s estate.  Although Cora tells him  that while she’s very disappointed in him, she assures him that she still loves him.  Cora has every right to be furious at her brother, and while she’s angry towards him, she remains civil at all times.  Cora knows that destroying their relationship would serve no useful purpose.  But if she continues to support him emotionally, he’ll find his way.  Family sticks by family, through the good times and the bad.

The second theme is gratitude.  Throughout the television show and the films, The Granthams have always been depicted as being magnanimous towards their servants and those who help manage the estate.  Several of those characters in turn express their gratitude towards the Granthams through their words and deeds.  When Tom hears that the financial stability of Downton Abbey is in question, he offers the profits from the sale of his car business to Lord Grantham.  Thomas convinces Guy and Noel Coward to come to the estate for dinner.  Anna helps get the word out about Noel Coward’s visit.  Mr. Mason sings Lady Mary’s praises after he receives an award.  When you treat the people who work for you well, they are grateful and never forget.

Tea and biscuits

There’s no character who has changed more dramatically over the course of Downton Abbey than Lady Edith.  After being portrayed as a hopeless ugly duckling for years, The Grand Finale is a showcase for her total makeover.  First the movie awards her with a hubba-hubba moment–a full length shot where we can admire her figure when she’s wearing only silk undergarments.  Then she cuts Sambrook down to size with a cold viciousness that would have made her sister proud.

Poor Miss Baxter.  Someone should have warned her that marrying a writer can be a trying situation.  Not a day goes by that she probably wonders who Molesley loves more, her or his typewriter.

No subplot cries out “spinoff” more than Thomas, Guy and Molesley.  Who wouldn’t want to see that trio gallivanting around old Hollywood.

If there’s ever been a more ribald moment in Downton Abbey than when Mrs. Hughes tells Mrs. Patmore that having sex with her new husband will be so much fun, I can’t think of it.

Seeing Daisy asserting her authority in the kitchen was awesome.

In 1930, the gossip network between ladies maids was just as fast as today’s internet.

You know Lord Grantham has turned into a cranky old man when he complains about the price of dinner in London.  Ten pounds?!?

The only drawback to having the events of this final chapter being confined to a movie is that we didn’t get to see Lady Mary wallowing in self pity.  There should have been scenes of her raiding the ice box late at night, drinking wine straight from the bottle, sleeping in until noon, stumbling to the breakfast table hungover, etc.

Even though Mary, Edith and Tom’s children represent the next generation, the movie epitomizes the adage that “children should be seen and not heard”.

There must be something in the Crowley DNA, because Tom’s daughter Sybbie is cute as a button.  Tom’s going to have to fight off her suitors with a stick in a couple years.

After being forced to leave Lady Petersfield’s ball over fears of upsetting the Royals, I hope Lady Mary lived to see Princess Margaret being laid low by her scandalous affair twenty-five years later.  

I get that Molesley is a stand-in for Jullian Fellowes, but why does Fellowes turn him into such a nerd?

I loved how the movie explores retirement from different angles:

• Carson has no idea of what to do with his time and turns into a busy-body.
• Since they have money, Lord Grantham and Cora get to spend their days traveling.
• Mrs. Patmore will have no excuses for not spending time with her husband.

I admit that I got misty-eyed when Mrs. Patmore told Daisy that she was the daughter she never had.

Seeing Lady Violet appear one last time during Mary’s closing reverie also got to me.  Farewell, Maggie Smith.

I never would have guessed that Mr. Mason (a.k.a Mrs. Patmore’s husband) would get a show-stopping moment in this movie.  It really shows the equanimity Fellowes has towards these characters that even a minor one can bring the house down with an impassioned speech.

It’s unfortunate that Dan Stevens insisted on being killed off after just three seasons.  The series has missed his insouciance.  Harry Hadden-Paton’s Lord Hexham was fine but not equivalent.

Talk about continuity, new head butler Andy joins Thomas as butlers who make no bones about showing their irritation over Carson’s meddling.

Well, at least this is the last time Allen Leech (aka Tom Branson) will have to play a character who’s constantly sheepish over his charmed life and the deus ex machina for the plot.