"Downton Abbey: A New Era"

 

When the smash hit British soap opera/TV series "Downton Abbey" came to the end of its run on Public Television in 2016, fans of the series agreed that it was perfect way to wrap up the series.  Loose ends were tied up, happy endings abounded, and there was the promise of good things the future for all the characters involved.  Everyone, including the producers and the actors, said "That's it.  No more 'Downton Abbey'."

Of course, we know what happened,  A "Downton Abbey" movie was released in 2019, and fans of the series flocked to it and loved it, including Mr. and Mrs. Grandstander.  Surely, however, that would be it.  Surely there would be no further need to make yet another Downton Abbey movie.  Surely, the producers and actors will have moved on and want no further part in such an obvious money grab.

Well, nothing speaks louder in Hollywood than money, and a new movie, "Downton Abbey: A New Era" was released yesterday.  And in a feat of utter disgust for this shameless and obvious greed, The Grandstander looked Julian Fellows right in the eye and proclaimed:

Yep, there we were, at the McCandless Cinemark on Opening Day, and loving every soapy, stiff-upper-lipped moment of it.

This one takes place at the dawn of the 1930's and after the joyful wedding of Tom Branson, the movie splits in to dual plot lines.  

Plot #1:  Lady Violet, played with the usual gusto by Maggie Smith, has inherited a gorgeous seaside villa in the south of France.  Who has bequeathed this to her and, more importantly and mysteriously, why has it been bequeathed to her?  Half of the family heads off the France to check into this whole thing, while we also see unfolding....

Plot #2:  A movie production company wants to use Downton Abbey for location shooting of a motion picture.  It is hard to say who is more horrified at the prospect of a bunch of grubby actors traipsing all over the estate and stealing the silverware, the stuffy Earl, his mother the Dowager, or the even snobbier servants. However, the studio is offering a lot of money for the use of the estate, and the Granthams actually need the money to fix the roof of the old castle.  Lady Mary stays behind to supervise the whole thing and finds herself smack in the middle of a dilemma lifted straight out of "Singin' In The Rain" with Mary playing the Debbie Reynolds part. No singing or dancing, of course.  Oh, and the filming of this movie-within-the-movie ends with a completely contrived "Hey, kids, let's put on a show" type of finale, but what the hell,  it's all a jolly good time.

No spoilers, but a dose of sadness comes with this iteration of the Downton Abbey Saga, but it is sadness that is overlaid with optimism as well.  

Plus, Lady Mary, played by the lovely Michelle Dockery, has made a 180 degree turn since this story began.  She started off as a spoiled, bitchy, brat, and has become a more than competent, compassionate, and selfless person.  She will obviously become the Grantham who will lead the family into the future as the middle part of the twentieth century approaches, and she won't need a man to help her do it, either.

I only wish that Lady Rose, as played by Lily James, was still a part of this tale, but - sigh - you can't have everything.

The Grandstander just can't help himself:  Four Stars for this one!

As far as the next Downton Abbey movie is concerned, it surely has to be centered around Edward VIII, Wallis Warefield Simpson, and that nasty bit of business surrounding the abdication, don't you think?

"Downton Abbey"....The Movie

Before I comment on the new movie, "Downton Abbey", allow me to cut-n-paste from my Grandstander post of March 8, 2016, a post that was made right after the final episode to this Masterpiece Theater series aired.....

• I will give no spoilers here, but I will say that the Final Episode of "Downton Abbey" that aired this past Sunday was just about perfect.  Loose ends tied up, happy endings, and just a hint of good things to happen for the various characters.  And did you notice that the final line of spoken dialog belonged to Maggie Smith, the Dowager Countess?  As it was with most of her lines over six seasons, it was perfect.

• Of course, now the inevitable talk of a "Downton Abbey" reunion movie begins.  I suppose that the money will be irresistible to all concerned, and I would be in the theater the first week such a movie opens, but a part of me thinks that it would be best to resist the cash grab. Isn't it an old show biz saying that it's always best to leave the audience wanting more?

Well, as I always like to say, I believe I had that.  The fans demanded a movie follow up, no one was able to resist coming back for what has been, essentially, a big old fashioned money grab, and there we were, sitting in the Tull Theater in Sewickley last night for a sneak preview showing of the movie, "Downton Abbey", one day before its "official" opening.  As my friend Dan like to say, we stared Julian Fellows right in the eye and said "Shut up and take our money."

So how was it?  It was great, and the double date duo of the Sproules and the Bonks loved, loved, loved it!!

The movie takes place in 1927 (no mention was made in the film of what Babe Ruth was doing over in the colonies that particular summer, so what was up with that?), and the Crawleys receive notice that King George V and Queen Mary will be traveling about and will be spending a day and a night with them at Downton Abbey!  Oh, the excitement, and oh the preparations that must take place before this Royal Visit. But, of course, there are going to be complications.  As our friend Bonny put it (she saw it earlier in the week, before we did!), many of the plot points in the movie are contrived beyond belief, but, what the Hell, that all add up to great Downton Abbey-style fun.

In the space of a two hour movie, many of the characters who were developed over the course of a six year series are reduced almost to cameo status (Mr. Bates, for example, and maybe even Robert Crawley, the Earl of Grantham himself), and the filmmakers seemed to try perhaps a bit too much to get everyone involved in a piece the action, so that it seems a bit forced, but, again, so what?  If you were a fan if the series, you are going to love every bit of the soapy silliness of the movie.

Not surprisingly, the best lines throughout the movie were given to Maggie Smith as the Dowager Countess as she traded barbs with with Penelope Wilton's Isobel Merton.   And she also was a part of the most touching scene in the film when she spoke with Lady Mary, played by the beautiful Michelle Dockery.

The movie is also just flat out gorgeous to look at.  Beautiful scenery, beautiful costumes, and beautiful people.  A jolly good show!

I doubt that anyone other than fans of the TV series will see this movie, and that will surely be enough to make this a box office smash.  I only hope that the producers will resist the urge, and the urge will surely be there, to make another  Downton Abbey movie.  Please don't overdo it.  But if they do, The Grandstander will no doubt show up and force Julian Fellows and company to take his money.

Because of some of the aforementioned plot contrivances, I might be tempted to give this one Three and one-half stars, but I'm going to get caught up in the fanboy aura that emanates from "Downton Abbey"  - it gets the full Four Stars from The Grandstander!!!

This and That

Cleaning out the Mental In-Box.....

• I will give no spoilers here, but I will say that the Final Episode of "Downton Abbey" that aired this past Sunday was just about perfect.  Loose ends tied up, happy endings, and just a hint of good things to happen for the various characters.  And did you notice that the final line of spoken dialog belonged to Maggie Smith, the Dowager Countess?  As it was with most of her lines over six seasons, it was perfect.

• Of course, now the inevitable talk of a "Downton Abbey" reunion movie begins.  I suppose that the money will be irresistible to all concerned, and I would be in the theater the first week such a movie opens, but a part of me thinks that it would be best to resist the cash grab. Isn't it an old show biz saying that it's always best to leave the audience wanting more.
• We are three weeks into Spring Training, and Pedro Alvarez had FINALLY signed on with a team, the Orioles.  I really wish him nothing but the best, but we know what the Orioles are getting...a .230 or so hitter, who can't field, can't hit left-handers, and who strikes out a lot, but he CAN hit the most incredible and prodigious home runs that you will ever see.  

• Speaking of the Pirates, they are now playing practice games, and we have even been able to see them on TV for a few of those.  Nice watching some baseball again, even though after about six innings you become Butch Cassidy when watching and saying "Who are those guys?"
• And farewell to Peyton Manning.  Very classy retirement speech yesterday.  I don't really need to sum up his accomplishments, do I?  He goes out with his final game being a victory in the Super Bowl. Perfect. Perhaps the producers of "Downton Abbey" should take note.

A Mixed Sunday Morning Bag

Selected Short Subjects for a Sunday morning....

To Absent Friends - David Brenner

Add me to the list of those offering condolences over the death yesterday of comedian David Brenner.

The last time I remember seeing Brenner was when he played himself on an episode of "Modern Family" a few seasons back.  Prior to that, I can't remember when I had seen him last, but he certainly was a ubiquitous presence on TV back in his prime.

I was surprised when I saw that he was 78 years old.  That shocked me, but then I remember that I would watch him on TV when I was in college and THAT was forty or so years ago, so if he was in his thirties then, well, time does have a way of passing by, doesn't it?

RIP David Brenner.

"Boardwalk Empire" Binge Watching

Marilyn and I are spending the weekend binge-watching Season Three of the great HBO series "Boardwalk Empire".  We are halfway through it as I type this.  Yes, I know that Season Four has already come and gone on HBO, so we are way behind the curve here.  It really is a terrific series - great writing, great acting, great production values.  Incredibly violent, but compelling nonetheless.

Season Three of Boardwalk takes place in 1923, which is the exact year in which the recently completed Season Four of "Downton Abbey" took place.  The juxtaposition of what was occurring at the exact same time on both sides of the Atlantic - the fading days of British aristocracy, and the battles of the Atlantic City, New York, and Chicago underworld during Prohibition in America - fascinates me.  It will never happen, but wouldn't it be great to see these two worlds collide in some great crossover show?  Personally, I'd love to see Nucky Thompson give Thomas Barrow just exactly what he deserves!  And I think that there would be a place for Mr. Bates in Nucky's Boardwalk Empire.

In an episode we watched last night, Eli Thompson approached his brother and said, "Nucky, I'd like a word, please."    Maybe the two shows are more closely related than we think.

The Volquez Situation

One of the matters that has Pirates fans knickers in a knot this Spring Training is the performance of $5 million free agent pitcher Edinson Volquez.  He had an outing in a game yesterday wherein he gave up five runs in three innings and that actually brought his spring training ERA down  to 11.00.  And this is the guy who will take A.J. Burnett's spot in the rotation?

Well, it is worrisome, to be sure.  Fans can hope that Ray Searage can work the same magic on Volquez that he did on Francisco Liriano last season, but no signs of that yet.  Like it or not, I think that the season is going to start with Volquez in the rotation, but for how long if his ineffectiveness continues?  In 2013, the Pirates wasted little time in canning Jonathan Sanchez from the rotation and the team when it became obvious that he wasn't going to work, but the team hadn't invested Five Large in Sanchez as they have with Volquez.  Will the team be willing to eat that much money?  

Someone on Pirate Chat suggested that perhaps the team will figure out a way to put Volquez on the DL and give Searage a little more time to tinker with him, much the way it happened with Liriano last year.

I sure don't have the answer, but I am sure that the Pirates Brain Trust is asking the same questions.

Some Downton Abbey Thoughts (Spoiler Alert)

This post contains Spoilers regarding the Season Three final episode of "Downton Abbey".  So, if you still haven't watched that recording of this episode you made almost two weeks ago, stop right here.  But come on back once you have seen it.

Almost two weeks have passed since the final episode of Season Three was broadcast on PBS, and fans of the series are still reeling from the events of the season.  Early on, we had to deal with the death of Lady Sybil, and in the final ten minutes of the last show, we saw Matthew Crawley meet his maker.  Who saw THAT coming?

Of course, we must never forget that "Downton Abbey" is a soap opera.  A well-made and high quality one, to be sure, but still, a soap opera, and so once the initial shock of these two deaths passed, we really shouldn't be surprised that these events took place.  In reading about these episodes AFTER they were telecast, you learn that these characters were killed off for one of the oldest reasons in television:  the actors - Jessica Brown Findlay and Dan Stevens - wanted out, had contractual difficulties, and/or, and here's the best part, wanted to "pursue other opportunities".

Now, where have we heard that one before?  Are you like me, and did the name Maclean Stevenson spring to mind?  Stevenson, for all you youngsters out there, was one of the co-stars of the hit TV series M*A*S*H back from 1972-83.  However, that wasn't enough for Stevenson.  He wanted more.  He wanted to be a star in his own series.  So he left M*A*S*H after three seasons, and was pretty much never heard from again, and M*A*S*H ran for another eight years.  David Caruso thought he'd be a movie star so he bagged "NYPD Blue", and pretty much dissed series television as the minor leagues, until, of course, he bombed in movies and came running back to series TV (CSI:Miami) with his tail between his legs.  Katherine Heigl won an Emmy in Grey's Anatomy, but, again, contractual differences and the need to be a movie star called her away from that gravy train.  She has since been featured in any number of bomb romantic comedies.  She's probably crying all the way to the bank, but still.

I am sure if I thought hard enough, I could come up with more such examples, but you get the idea.  In the meantime, let's just add the names of Jessica Brown Findlay and Dan Stevens as the early nominees for the 2013 "Maclean Stevenson Award - British Division".

Another thought on "Downton Abbey", this one courtesy of friend Dave Jones (The Official Fantasy Sports Kommissioner to The Grandstander).  If you are a fan of both "Downton Abbey" and HBO's "Boardwalk Empire", have you realized that both of these shows are taking place in approximately the same time period?  Think about it, while the Grantham's are dealing with the rigors and strains of life in the fading days of the British Aristocracy following World War I, across the pond, Nucky Thompson and his guys are trying to control the flow of booze and all organized crime in Atlantic City.  What a contrast of life styles!

The producers missed a great opportunity for a crossover, when Nucky went to Ireland in Season Two to meet with IRA rebels to corner the American market for Irish whiskey.  Wouldn't it have been a hoot if he had met with Thomas Branson while there?  As for me, I'd love to see a "sit-down" involving Nucky Thompson and the Dowager Countess.  That would be Must See TV!

Downton Abbey (No Spoilers)

I am giving everyone until this weekend to watch this past Sunday's Season III finale of Downton Abbey.  

Next week, no holds barred in the discussions.

We Succumb to Downton Abbey

So, let me tell you what Marilyn and I have been doing over the last five days.

We spent much of that time - more than is probably good for any human being - sitting in front of the TV plowing through Seasons One and Two of the hoity-toity PBS Masterpiece Theater British soap opera, Downton Abbey.  Today, thanks to the magic of the PBS iPad app and the DVR, we will watch episodes one through three of Season Three and then we will plant ourselves in front of the TV on Sunday night to catch up with the travails of the Grantham family, and their loyal and scheming servants in real time.  No longer will we be the outcasts when discussions of this insanely popular show arise, and make no mistake, such discussions are ALWAYS arising!

It was a conversation with Marilyn's brothers and their wives last week that tipped the scales and made us hit Target and scoop up the Season One DVD set to see just what in the hell everyone was talking about.  It didn't take long to be hooked and finish that set, and then head out to Target to snap up Season Two, which we finished with a five episode marathon last night.  Lest you think we are completely crazy, we did take a break for dinner.

It is a well made, nicely acted, and beautifully photographed show, and it is, as our behaviour described above indicates, very compelling.  I like the fact that much of the action takes place off-camera.  By that I mean, if Character A needs to tell Character B about a development that we, the viewers, have already seen or been made aware of, we, the viewers, are not forced to see the conversation between A and B.  This avoids the usual glacial pace of most soap operas, and makes for a fast paced series.  Hey, they got through the entirety of World War I in just seven episodes!

And I just love Maggie Smith!!!  If there is such a thing as reincarnation, I want to come back as a Dowager Countess.

I now anxiously await each episode of Season III, but I fear that at some point something in me will snap and I will say, "Hey, I'm tired of Lady Mary and her back-and-forth affairs of the heart;  just marry SOMEONE for God's sake, or I'm going to quit watching!"  That jump-the-shark moment hasn't arrived yet, but, as I say, I fear it's approach.

In the meantime, I shall don my boiled collar and white tie and prepare myself for dinner, whilst reading the numerous messages that arrive in the post each day.