12 September 2025
DOWNTON ABBEY – THE GRAND FINALE ***
Happily for its fans, this is a good one – starting off in 1930s London, jumping straight into the bright lights of Leicester Square and a Noel Coward musical, with some of the Downton Abbey family (downstairs and upstairs) in the delighted audience.
Once again written by Julian Fellowes, the original creator of this classy soap opera of many years, it’s again directed by Simon Curtis, who did the second, very successful “Downton Abbey – A New Era” film. This third one covers the various characters from the six years of the TV series (2010-2015) and shows how they navigate the changing times in a troubled but finally effective way.
There is the brewing scandal of Lady Mary’s (Michelle Dockery) divorce, which for the era made her a pariah in its fine but uptight society. And then there are the financial constraints to the grand old ways of running an aristocratic manor and life style; and the solidarity of the family when overwhelmed by rogues or by public pressures.
They are all here – Mr. Carson, Lord Grantham, the mousy sister Edith who has bloomed, the very touching Mrs. Patmore and so many others – in shorter episodes, bringing this wonderful group of characters into its (supposed) finale. The film brings smiles, a few worries, a tear or two and a satisfying ending. It’s been a wonderful journey, and finally the one who puts it all into a delightful nutshell is the Noel Coward character, played by a spot on Arty Froushan. He adds that just right debonair yet naughty touch to these changing times. Charming.
THE SHROUDS **1/2
The enduring Canadian director David Cronenberg, who has been making movies for some 55 years, makes strange, ‘body horror’ films, works about twisted lives such as “The Fly”, “Crash” or “Spider” – often with top actors such as Jeff Goldblum, James Spader or Ralph Fiennes.
This one is in the same vein but with a bit more intrigue, about a man (an elegant Vincent Cassel) who creates cemeteries with screens on the sleek tombstones that show the disintegration of the corpse within, all very high tech. He started this when his lovely young wife (Diane Kruger) died and he wanted to keep her close in his memory,
There’s also his wife’s twin sister who is still alive, and some other mysteries. It’s all enigmatic yet quite stylish in its cinematography and mood. That’s actually what it is – moody, and strange.
CONNEMARA ** (vo French)
Hélene, a beautiful young mother (Mélanie Thierry) of two pre-teen daughters, feels stifled in her marriage and disengaged at her work in Paris. Doctors diagnose burnout and a possible depression, and she is advised to take time off and go back to her provincial hometown.
There she finds a new job and appears happy in her old haunts. But then she comes upon an old high school flame (the sultry Bastien Bouiilion) who was a hockey star back in the day. He is on the verge of a divorce and is concerned about his young son, who is still living with him, along with an ageing father who is descending into dementia.
It seems that Helene’s mother is taking care of her daughters and that her husband isn’t important to her. This latest film by actor/comedian Alex Lutz creates a passionate tale of the blossoming of an old love, but the disjointed, intentionally artsy editing of scenes with disconnected time elements takes away from the clarity of the story and the pace of the film.
It’s never quite clear where her children are or how the marriage is breaking down due to the highly sensual passion between the new lovers.
There are too many scenes of hockey training and games, fragmented conversations, parties where a still troubled Hélène feels isolated, office tensions and more lovemaking. This frustrating work is a jumble of moods and disparate moments…
The mysterious title comes from an old, popular song by Michel Sardou, “Les lacs du Connemara”, which we hear at the end of the film. By the way, Connemara is in the wild, west coast of Ireland, yet more French than this you cannot get.
L’AVENTURA ** (vo French)
We follow a family on their holiday through Italy. They are a lively, loving tribe – the parents and their two children – a spirited little boy and his older sister who is taping the vacation. They each have their faults and needs but laugh a lot together. It has the feel of summer, the erratic moments of a vacation on the go, with lots of humour and cuddling between them.
The film by Sophie Letourneur (who also plays the mother) is like a reality show or a documentary, very realistically acted, but repetitive after a while and following this energetic ensemble becomes tiring…
We end up feeling we need a holiday away from these sweet but too boisterous people.
MUTINY IN HEAVEN – NICK CAVE’s EARLY YEARS
A documentary on the late 1970s punk band, The Birthday Party, with all its ugly drinking, drugging, destruction and useless anarchy. I did not go to the screening.
Check out the trailer for yourself….
SIRAT (vo French, Arabic)
This film created quite a sensation in Cannes – with some hating it, others feeling it was a mystical, sonorous wonder. It’s about a man (Sergi Lopez) and his young son who are desperately searching for the daughter who seems to have disappeared into the Moroccan desert where there are numerous rave parties.
There’s much dust, endless quests and strange characters doing their thing with the throbbing music…
Here also, check out the trailer first…
Superb **** Very Good *** Good ** Mediocre * Miserable – no stars
By Neptune
Neptune Ravar Ingwersen reviews film extensively for publications in Switzerland. She views 4 to 8 films a week and her aim is to sort the wheat from the chaff for readers.
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