8 Things I Wish I Could Tell Maggie Smith About “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale”

Dear Maggie Smith:

You always claimed you hadn’t watched Downton Abbey, the TV series, and you didn’t look inclined to watch either of nan Downton movies you appeared in. When nan first, 2019’s Downton Abbey: The Movie, was still successful nan talking stages, you said you hoped nan opening segment would person your character, Dowager Countess Violet, already successful nan grave. 

But you must person known that your unbeatable comic flair — your expertise to occurrence disconnected zingers pinch a deadly precision that mightiness person served good successful nan Charge of nan Light Brigade — was cardinal to nan occurrence of nan full enterprise. Now (alas!) you dwell successful nan Great Upstairs — you died distant astir a twelvemonth ago, astatine nan property of 89 — and you’ll ne'er person nan chance to spot this past and astir satisfying Downton film, The Grand Finale. Assuming, of course, you moreover wanted to. 

But possibly you would have. Julian Fellowes, nan show’s creator, said successful a caller Times of London  question and reply that he recovered your declare not to person watched Downton “slightly difficult to believe” — aft all, he said, you were a perfectionist and ever took your performances “tremendously seriously.”

Is his hunch correct, Dame Maggie? If so, I would for illustration to stock pinch you immoderate observations astir Finale. Perhaps an obliging, halo-headed butler will sidle up to you connected your unreality and stock this file pinch you.

1. Not a awesome point, but I wonderment what you would person made of nan movie’s peculiar title, pinch its usage of that showy adjective “grand.” A moviegoer mightiness expect The Fast and nan Furious to extremity pinch a “grand finale,” but not a franchise astir nan British landed aristocracy. It’s arsenic if John Galsworthy had called nan past of his Forsyte Saga novels Out With a Bang!

2. You mightiness beryllium pleased to cognize really much, acknowledgment to your capacity successful six TV seasons and 2 movies, Violet makes herself felt successful this film, moreover though she's physically absent. The Downton heap still opens onto 2 immense wings, 1 built of nostalgia and nan different of sentimentality, but Violet has taken up residence astatine its bosom arsenic a benignant of family deity. Her stern-browed image dominates nan main foyer, and her heirs laughter astatine nan connection “weekend,” which erstwhile made Violet bristle pinch displeasure astatine nan illusion “advances” of nan modern world. 

3. In truth — and I opportunity this pinch nan top respect — nan movie useful perfectly good without you. Violet was ne'er really cardinal to nan larger goings-on, anyway, isolated from for nan truth that her advancing property marked nan disappearance of nan aged imperial Britain, 1 that would ne'er person anticipated a early successful which Harry and  Meghan would beryllium down for an question and reply pinch an American named Oprah Winfrey. You looked, astatine least, arsenic if you mightiness person lived through, and endured, a important chunk of history. But Fellowes is an indefatigable storyteller: The full formed could person discontinue to activity pinch you connected a Harry Potter film, and he’d person found  a measurement to support nan communicative going afloat steam. He spins retired immoderate number of crippled threads, astir of them enjoyable, nary worked done pinch overmuch subtlety. If he were a spider, his web would beryllium hemp.

Let maine propulsion retired conscionable a fewer of Grand Finale's communicative arcs, truthful you'll person an idea: Mary (Michelle Dockery, jaw clenched and languidly gorgeous) is recently divorced, which has reduced her to nan position of societal pariah. Mrs. Patmore (Lesley Nicol), nan cook, is retiring, leaving nan location to unrecorded pinch that darling aged Mr. Mason (Paul Copley). Here's nan 1 surprise: Mrs. Patmore is anxious that, aft each these years connected her own, rolling retired pastry crusts and chiding Daisy (Sophie McShera), she won't cognize really to bask sex. (Needless to say, nary 1 astatine Downton would ever usage nan building “enjoy sex.”) Lord Grantham (Hugh Bonneville), who tin really beryllium a spot of a poopy-head, astir explodes astatine nan proposal that he mightiness person to waste disconnected nan family’s London house. And Baroness Merton (Penelope Wilton) recruits Daisy and Carson (Jim Carter) to service connected nan committee for nan yearly section fair.

Do you request to perceive more?

4. Regardless of plot, everyone present seems to cognize that they’re acting retired a dream — Grand Finale is conscionable arsenic overmuch a imagination arsenic Barbie, only pinch curtsies, tiaras and that annoying gadfly Noel Coward (Arty Froushan), ever happy to beryllium down astatine nan soft and trill “Poor Little Rich Girl.”  The servants, astatine nan end, statement up and activity goodbye to nan Crawleys (and us), arsenic if they were grateful Munchkins seeing Dorothy disconnected connected her return travel to Kansas. You show up, too, arsenic a very sentimental cameo. You whitethorn not person wanted to watch that, either.

5. Then again, isn't that almost shameless sentimentality what besides makes Downton truthful charming? In nan years since its superb (and ne'er surpassed) first season, nary of its characters has really changed psychologically: They've risen aliases fallen successful status, married, enjoyed sex, had children and, from clip to time, died, but they’re fundamentally topiary shrubs kept successful regular bully trim. We for illustration and judge them for who and what they are. That’s a testament some to Fellowes’s penning and nan large, impeccable cast, and it'd beryllium churlish to expect thing else. At nan screening I attended, a patient percent of nan assemblage was dressed successful due Downton-era costumes — a somewhat hallucinatory experience, but they looked terrific and were having a delightful time. They could person entered nan screen, successful a benignant of reverse Purple Rose of Cairo, and been perfectly astatine home. I’m not judge anyone would person noticed. 

Besides, it's not arsenic if there's a shortage of good, superior British films astir nan aristocracy that tin enactment arsenic Downton supplements, from 1988's appropriately pitiless A Handful of Dust, based connected nan Evelyn Waugh novel, to Jim Broadbent's loony short movie A Sense of History, successful which an earl inherits his family's property by murdering his older, homosexual brother. And let's not hide nan Fellowes-scripted Gosford Park (2001), a sharp-eyed introspection of upstairs-vs.-downstairs directed by nan resolutely unsentimental Robert Altman (you played nan drily, cruelly haughty Countess of Trentham, and were Oscar-nominated).

5. By nan way, what's your sentiment of Joseph Molesley (Kevin Doyle)? He remains Downton’s astir realistic character, nan only 1 pinch a problematically analyzable personality. Molesley, who someway transcends Downton’s fond preoccupation pinch class, is personification a spectator has to grapple with. Having risen from valet to screenwriter by grim determination arsenic good arsenic a alternatively abrasive obsequiousness, Molesley still whines and gripes, frets and schemes — he’s a petty, unserious man, almost ingratiatingly uningratiating. But of people he doesn't cognize that.

Would you person had much nosy playing Molesley than Violet?

6. This leads maine to ask: Did you find Lady Violet excessively one-note? Is that perhaps why you were reluctant to admit your Downton stardom? After all, you were a amended character than the show aliases nan films really needed. A Saturday Night Live skit erstwhile described Violet arsenic “the chickenhearted lady” — not a benignant point to say, really, but nan domiciled did require a batch of clucking disapproval and brisk shakes of nan head. Violet had occasional moments of empathy and kindness, and those you played beautifully.

But Violet's quips were usually more, well, quippy than witty — thing connected Downton ever capitalized connected your dry, acerbic joke arsenic afloat arsenic nan domiciled of Dianna Barrie, the aging character successful California Suite (1978). I’ll ne'er hide really you turned nan the statement “I look for illustration a brand-new, steel-belted radial tire” into a pivoting drawstring of sighs. You won an Oscar for that film,

7. And location were your singular melodramatic performances too, successful which you embraced your characters' eccentricities without sacrificing your compassion. Perhaps you'd for illustration to beryllium remembered little arsenic Violet, mistress of nan pre-Edwardian putdown, than arsenic nan illusion but passionate coach successful The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969), for which you won Best Actress; nan alcoholic Dublin female slow moving retired of options successful 1987's The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne (another Best Actress nomination); and nan depressed state vicar’s wife (again, an alcoholic) successful nan 50-minute speech Bed Among nan Lentils.