Taglines: We’ve been expecting you.
The film begins in 1927 by following the journey of a letter from Buckingham Palace to Downton Abbey. As the mail is being sorted and loaded onto the Mail Train in London, a stranger boards a carriage. The letter arrives at Downton Abbey, received by Andy, the footman and handed over to Mr Thomas Barrow, the Butler. Robert Crawley, The Earl of Grantham, is given the mail as soon as he comes downstairs for breakfast with his daughter, Lady Mary Talbot, and son-in-law, Tom Branson. Robert reads the letter and announces that King George V and Queen Mary are coming to Downton as part of a royal tour through the country.
Queen Mary’s Lady-in-Waiting, Lady Maud Bagshaw, is the cousin of Lord Grantham, however the two families have fallen out due to an inheritance issue. The Dowager Countess of Grantham, Violet Crawley, is told by her son Robert that Maud is coming to Downton. She is shocked and perturbed by the news. Violet believes Robert is being cheated out of a rightful inheritance. The Royal Staff arrive; including the Royal Page of the Backstairs, the Queen’s Royal Dresser and the King’s Royal Dresser, Mr Richard Ellis. The Downton staff is caught off guard by the arrogance of the Royal staff.
The stranger who boarded the train has arrived in Downton Village and books a room overlooking the village greens and seeks out Tom Branson, introducing himself as Major Chetwode. Branson is convinced Major Chetwode is one of the royal detectives just checking up on him for the visit but Mary sees Tom coming out of a pub with Major Chetwode and becomes suspicious. Before the Royal parade through Downton Village, Tom is followed by Mary, in pursuit of Chetwode who has found the King on his horse awaiting the Royal Artillery. Chetwode removes a pistol from his coat and to aims it at the King when Tom tackles him to the ground telling Mary to grab the gun.
Mary has become convinced Barrow is not stepping up to the mark and asks Mr Carson, the now retired former butler of Downton Abbey, to return temporarily. Barrow, upset with being replaced, makes his feelings clear in a moment of rare candor between himself and Lord Grantham. Before leaving he informs them that the boiler is broken. Mary asks if Barrow will be sacked however, Robert is impressed with Barrow’s integrity. The plumber arrives to fix the boiler and flirts with Daisy, setting off jealousy in her fiancé Andy, who purposely breaks the boiler again in anger.
The household has been completely taken over by the Royal Staff but Anna and Bates have a plan. The King asks Bertie to accompany the Prince of Wales on a 3-month Tour of Africa; Edith is excited for Bertie but upset as she is now pregnant. Princess Mary is outside on a bench in the garden crying; Tom, unaware of her identity, approaches her, sparking a conversation which inspires the Princess to stay with her intolerable husband for the sake of the children.
Edith’s ball gown arrives however, in a delivery mix up, she receives a similar dress for someone twice her size. Anna, realizing that Miss Lorton is stealing from Downton Abbey, agrees to say nothing provided that Lorton return the items and fit Edith’s dress by morning. Downstairs, the Downton staff has gathered in the cellar excited by a plan to save Downton’s honour, but Mr Carson is concerned.
Downton Abbey is a 2019 historical drama film written by Julian Fellowes, creator and writer of the television series of the same name, produced by Gareth Neame, Liz Trubridge and Fellowes, and directed by Michael Engler. The film is a Carnival Films production, with Focus Features and Universal Pictures International distributing and continues the storyline from the series, with much of the original cast returning.
The film, set in 1927, depicts a visit by the King and Queen to the Crawley family’s English country house in the Yorkshire countryside. As the Royal staff descend on Downton, an assassin has also arrived and attempts to kill the monarch. The family and servants are pitted against the royal entourage, including the Queen’s lady-in-waiting, who has fallen out with the Crawleys, especially the Dowager Countess, over an inheritance issue.
Gareth Neame and Fellowes started planning a feature adaptation in 2016, shortly after the series ended. It was officially confirmed in July 2018 and filming began later that month, lasting through November. The film was released in the United Kingdom on 13 September 2019, and in the United States on 20 September 2019. It received generally positive reviews from critics and grossed $192 million worldwide.
Downton Abbey (2019)
Directed by: Michael Engler
Starring: Matthew Goode, Tuppence Middleton, Maggie Smith, Michelle Dockery, Elizabeth McGovern, Allen Leech, Joanne Froggatt, Raquel Cassidy, Laura Carmichael, Robert James-Collier
Screenplay by: Julian Fellowes
Production Design by: Donal Woods
Cinematography by: Ben Smithard
Film Editing by: Mark Day
Costume Design by: Anna Mary Scott Robbins
Art Direction by: Caroline Barton, Mark Kebby, Simon Walker
Music by: John Lunn
MPAA Rating: PG for thematic elements, some suggestive material, and language.
Distributed by: Focus Features
Release Date: September 20, 2019
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