No doubt some wealthy baron tried this. But the servant always got a bit twitchy.
It’s silky smooth, for all the raw personality flaws on display. Gosford Park (2001) covers the goings-on at the named British estate, sometime after World War I, where a collection of upper-class Brits, plus servants, plus an American film producer and his fairly cloddish servant have all gathered to eat, shoot pheasant, and gossip.
Their host is Sir William McCordle, wealthy factory owner, randy upper-class chap with that superiority complex that everyone hates, even his children, and especially those who need his support, financial or otherwise, to achieve their goals – or even stay afloat. And therein lies the rub, because virtually everyone who isn’t a servant, and perhaps one or two of them, might have a reason to do him in. Nearly everyone’s related to them, but he sees himself as king of the castle, not kindly benefactor – and that doesn’t play well in this landscape.
One attempt on his life goes awry, as someone – perhaps his son – appears to mistake Sir William for a peasant. Excuse me, pheasant. But, after much aggravation and an inadvertent admission of fooling around, eventually his body is found, both poisoned and stabbed, and now the plot may be afoot – but not necessarily for the killer. After all, the man had little in the way of ethics or morals, but plenty of energy for all those drab and dirty little pursuits for which the upper classes are most famous – taking advantage of everyone beneath them.
If you’re looking for a sharp whodunit, wend your way elsewhere, because the storytellers of Gosford Park are more interested in exploring how the superstructure of British society of the time is supported by all those folks underneath – even down at the police station. In a sense, the knife in the back of Sir William is emblematic of the knife of corruption and disconnectedness which has slowly been tearing apart and leveling British society ever since.
Oh so smoothly does Gosford Park do it in. No one, even those taking it between the shoulder blades, actually realizes it’s going in.
