Current thinking is that this will be the final Downton Abbey feature—at least, that’s what the title suggests. Then again, the same claim was made after A New Era, so whether this truly is the last dance for these beloved characters will depend on two things: how well the film performs at the box office and whether enough of the cast and crew are willing to reunite once more.
The downside of leaning so heavily on fan service is that it inevitably shuts out a broader audience. There is no conceivable reason why anyone unfamiliar with Downton Abbey would choose to see this film—and if they did, they would likely drift into sleep from a mix of confusion and boredom. The lightweight narrative all but demands prior familiarity. It is, at heart, a hangout movie for the Upstairs, Downstairs crowd. To its credit, the storyline is better tailored to the characters than that of A New Era, but there is only so much that can be accomplished in a two-hour runtime. The big screen is not the ideal format for these figures; they require time and space to let their arcs unfold. If Downton Abbey is to continue, a new television series would be a far better option than a fourth film.
With the exception of the late Violet Crawley (played by the late Dame Maggie Smith) and the absent Henry Talbot (Matthew Goode), Lady Mary’s (Michelle Dockery) no-good husband, most of the familiar TV and film regulars return—though some enjoy meatier roles than others. The two-pronged narrative focuses on the Crawley family’s financial struggles following the 1929 stock market crash and Lady Mary’s difficulties as a social pariah after her divorce from Henry. Among the upstairs contingent are Robert Crawley (Hugh Bonneville), his wife, Cora (Elizabeth McGovern), their daughter, Edith (Laura Carmichael), with her husband Bertie (Harry Hadden-Paton), son-in-law Tom Branson (Allen Leech), and Mary’s former mother-in-law, Isobel (Penelope Wilton). Downstairs, the ensemble includes the formidable butler Charlie Carson (Jim Carter), lady’s maids Phyllis Baxter (Raquel Cassidy) and Anna Bates (Joanne Froggatt), valet John Bates (Brendan Coyle), housekeeper Elsie Hughes (Phyllis Logan), and cooks Beryl Patmore (Lesley Nicol) and Daisy Parker (Sophie McShera). Also joining the cast are Paul Giamatti, reprising his role from the series as Cora’s brother, Dominic West (from A New Era), and newcomers Alessandro Nivola (as American Gus Sambrook), Joely Richardson (as Lady Petersfield), and Arty Fruoushan (as Noel Coward).
There isn’t a great deal to say about The Grand Finale. The dialogue no longer crackles the way it once did, a shortcoming that can largely be attributed to the absence of Maggie Smith, who consistently had the best lines and delivered them with just the right amount of vinegar. Smith, who was granted the chance to portray Violet’s on-screen death in A New Era before her own passing in 2024, is sorely missed—even if a prominently displayed portrait gives her character a lingering presence.
As much as screenwriter and series creator Julian Fellowes tries to provide every character with a reason to appear, many are reduced to little more than a handful of lines before they enter stage right and exit stage left. Only Mary, Robert, Cora, and Edith are afforded truly substantial roles. Michelle Dockery and Hugh Bonneville both shine, as does Jim Carter, even in a scaled-back performance. Paul Giamatti is a welcome presence, contributing a healthy dose of comedic relief, while Alessandro Nivola is deliciously smarmy in his turn.
Having seen every episode of the six-season TV series and both films, I’m ready to let go. The movies, though never narrative masterpieces, have fulfilled their purpose: they’ve given fans the chance to reconnect with beloved characters while offering nearly everyone on-screen a sense of closure. Could the story continue? Certainly. But in many ways, that would be a shame. While there is some appeal in exploring how these characters might navigate the Great Depression and the approach of the Second World War, such arcs could never be properly developed within the confines of a feature film. The Grand Finale should be what its title promises: an elegant farewell. [Berardinelli's rating: 2.5 stars out of 4]
Labels: drama, period
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