DOWNTON ABBEY: THE GRAND FINALE

Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is the beautiful farewell to the beloved series that conjures up the perfect mix of emotions in audiences thanks to the film’s story revolving around legacy and change, that when fuelled by scandal, magnificent performances from the entire cast and creator Julian Fellowes’ excellent writing, ensures that this is one bittersweet farewell that fans are going to fall in love with.

As the world enters the 1930s, it faces change, and that change is coming to Downton Abbey. While the second film was entitled Downton Abbey: A New Era, it is this third and final film that truly begins a new era as change and scandal comes to Downton as fans once again must say farewell to the Crawley family and their domestic servants. Continuing the high standard set by the television series and the previous two films, creator Julian Fellowes captures all the heart, drama, laughter and emotion that made fans fall in love with this series in the first place in the most fitting farewell imaginable.  With its focus on legacy, Fellowes delivers a beautiful sendoff to his beloved creation that is never short of fantastic performances, outstanding set decoration and costuming, and all the drama that fans have loved about this series, ensuring that this grand finale is everything that fans of Downton Abbey deserve and more.

From changing generational perspectives on life, love and duty, the world is facing change as it enters the 1930s. The decline of the British aristocracy continues to loom, as the Crawley family faces its own share of troubles with Lady Mary’s divorce from Harold Talbot becoming a public spectacle and the return of Cora’s brother Harold and the troubles with their mother’s estate. The Downton Abbey films have always been concerned about legacy, particularly with the late Maggie Smith’s Violet Crawley preparing Mary to eventually take over Downton Abbey from her father Robert, which becomes a central point of contention in this film given the public scandal surrounding Lady Mary and Robert struggling to relinquish control. But, this also leads to some beautiful and tender character moments amongst the members of the Crawley family that help to create the beating heart of the film. The screenplay is not without its big events, with the return of Dominic West’s Guy Dexter to Downton Abbey and the local county fair that many of the characters play a hand in organizing, which give some excitement for the big screen while ensuring that there is a plotline for every beloved character to play a part in.

But the strength of this finale lies in the individual character arcs that Fellowes has written. Each character is given their standout moment to be the centrepiece of their final showing, especially that killer scene for Laura Carmichael’s Lady Edith or the beautiful moment between Mrs. Patmore and Daisy teased in the film’s trailer. In doing so, Fellowes closes out each character’s story with a loving compassion that is certain to satisfy all fans that this landmark series has garnered in its fifteen year run. The result is a farewell to these cherished character that strikes all the right emotional notes that will no doubt have longtime fans tearing up throughout the film, before it reaches its grand finale which is certain to have the waterworks going due to its sheer brilliance and compassion. And while there is a strong sense of closure with this third film that would be the perfect note for the series to close out on, it still leaves the door open for a potential continuation with Lady Mary steering Downton Abbey through the next decade should Fellowes and his creative team ever want to revisit these characters.

At this point, it seems like not much more needs to be said about the phenomenal performances of the cast of Downton Abbey, because we have seen it time and time again over the course of five seasons of television and two movies, but there is not a weak performance in sight. Michelle Dockery is a force to be reckoned with as Lady Mary, bringing a fierce strength as she battles the negative reception of her divorce and the affect it has on her place in society, yet a heartbreaking vulnerability as she privately deals with it amongst her family as her future lies in the balance. Paul Giamatti makes every film he is in better, and his return to the franchise after one episode is a high point of the movie as his energy makes a perfect addition to the Crawley family as he and his sister Cora must move forward after an unfortunate turn in their family’s inheritance, bringing a warmth and great sense of humour to the film. Hugh Bonneville is excellent as Lord Grantham, facing his own personal crisis as he realizes his time as the Lord of the estate is coming to an end, facing a future without his position which has been a constant in his life while fearing the effect giving up the title to his daughter could have on his family’s legacy given the recent scandal surrounding her, while Elizabeth McGovern, Carmichael, and Allen Leech all have standout moments. As for the rest of the, they’re all simply excellent and make knowing these characters a true pleasure for the audience as they each bid farewell to them.Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is the beautiful farewell to the beloved series that conjures up the perfect mix of emotions in audiences thanks to the film’s story revolving around legacy and change, that when fuelled by scandal, magnificent performances from the entire cast and creator Julian Fellowes’ excellent writing, ensures that this is one bittersweet farewell that fans are going to fall in love with.

As the world enters the 1930s, it faces change, and that change is coming to Downton Abbey. While the second film was entitled Downton Abbey: A New Era, it is this third and final film that truly begins a new era as change and scandal comes to Downton as fans once again must say farewell to the Crawley family and their domestic servants. Continuing the high standard set by the television series and the previous two films, creator Julian Fellowes captures all the heart, drama, laughter and emotion that made fans fall in love with this series in the first place in the most fitting farewell imaginable.  With its focus on legacy, Fellowes delivers a beautiful sendoff to his beloved creation that is never short of fantastic performances, outstanding set decoration and costuming, and all the drama that fans have loved about this series, ensuring that this grand finale is everything that fans of Downton Abbey deserve and more.

From changing generational perspectives on life, love and duty, the world is facing change as it enters the 1930s. The decline of the British aristocracy continues to loom, as the Crawley family faces its own share of troubles with Lady Mary’s divorce from Harold Talbot becoming a public spectacle and the return of Cora’s brother Harold and the troubles with their mother’s estate. The Downton Abbey films have always been concerned about legacy, particularly with the late Maggie Smith’s Violet Crawley preparing Mary to eventually take over Downton Abbey from her father Robert, which becomes a central point of contention in this film given the public scandal surrounding Lady Mary and Robert struggling to relinquish control. But, this also leads to some beautiful and tender character moments amongst the members of the Crawley family that help to create the beating heart of the film. The screenplay is not without its big events, with the return of Dominic West’s Guy Dexter to Downton Abbey and the local county fair that many of the characters play a hand in organizing, which give some excitement for the big screen while ensuring that there is a plotline for every beloved character to play a part in.

But the strength of this finale lies in the individual character arcs that Fellowes has written. Each character is given their standout moment to be the centrepiece of their final showing, especially that killer scene for Laura Carmichael’s Lady Edith or the beautiful moment between Mrs. Patmore and Daisy teased in the film’s trailer. In doing so, Fellowes closes out each character’s story with a loving compassion that is certain to satisfy all fans that this landmark series has garnered in its fifteen year run. The result is a farewell to these cherished character that strikes all the right emotional notes that will no doubt have longtime fans tearing up throughout the film, before it reaches its grand finale which is certain to have the waterworks going due to its sheer brilliance and compassion. And while there is a strong sense of closure with this third film that would be the perfect note for the series to close out on, it still leaves the door open for a potential continuation with Lady Mary steering Downton Abbey through the next decade should Fellowes and his creative team ever want to revisit these characters.

At this point, it seems like not much more needs to be said about the phenomenal performances of the cast of Downton Abbey, because we have seen it time and time again over the course of five seasons of television and two movies, but there is not a weak performance in sight. Michelle Dockery is a force to be reckoned with as Lady Mary, bringing a fierce strength as she battles the negative reception of her divorce and the affect it has on her place in society, yet a heartbreaking vulnerability as she privately deals with it amongst her family as her future lies in the balance. Paul Giamatti makes every film he is in better, and his return to the franchise after one episode is a high point of the movie as his energy makes a perfect addition to the Crawley family as he and his sister Cora must move forward after an unfortunate turn in their family’s inheritance, bringing a warmth and great sense of humour to the film. Hugh Bonneville is excellent as Lord Grantham, facing his own personal crisis as he realizes his time as the Lord of the estate is coming to an end, facing a future without his position which has been a constant in his life while fearing the effect giving up the title to his daughter could have on his family’s legacy given the recent scandal surrounding her, while Elizabeth McGovern, Carmichael, and Allen Leech all have standout moments. As for the rest of the, they’re all simply excellent and make knowing these characters a true pleasure for the audience as they each bid farewell to them.

Being a period piece, the production and costume design play a very important role in creating the world, and the creative team knocks it out of the park. Anna Mary Scott Robins’ costume design captures the high class stylings and 1930s style of London with an exquisite eye for fashion, continuing her excellent work from the first two films and the final two seasons of the television show. The set decoration never misses the mark as Linda Wilson and her team bring to life the grand estate of Downton Abbey and the other locations of the film, which look stunning on screen with Ben Smithard’s sweeping shots of the estate and manor home. And it’s impossible not to get the chills as John Lunn’s musical score soars over the theatre sound system, especially the iconic Downton Abbey theme which never fails to amplify the grand design of the entire film.

Saying goodbye is never easy, especially to a series so beloved as Downton Abbey, but creator Julian Fellowes makes sure that the farewell to the Crawley family and their estate is every bit as fitting of the film’s grand title. Featuring the stellar writing, production design and technicals of the entire series, fans can rest assured that the final chapter in the Downton Abbey series is everything they can hope for that thanks to the brilliant performances of the entire cast, becoming an emotional farewell for the history books. Led by the fearless performances of Michelle Dockery and Hugh Bonneville and a string of memorable supporting turns from the film’s entire ensemble cast, Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale is a marvelous farewell to the beloved series thanks to Julian Fellowes’ screenplay which never for a second misses the heart, laughter, joy, drama and emotions that has made Downton Abbey one of the most cherished television series in recent memory.