downton abbey Archives

First View Movie Review – Gosford Park

February 18, 2021

Ah, yes… a British historical drama set in the early twentieth century created and written by Julian Fellowes. Oh… hang on… that’s Downton Abbey. Gosford Park is, in fact, a British historical drama set in the early twentieth century created and written by Julian Fellowes… bugger. I’m being whimsical. There are similarities between the two works and for […]

Dame Maggie Smith – Harry Potter’s Minerva McGonagal, Dowager Countess of Downton Abbey, and so much more…

February 16, 2021

(Don’t Panic: Maggie isn’t dead. I just wanted to write a bit about one of my favorite actresses.) Dame Margaret Natalie Smith, CH DBE, or Maggie Smith as she’s more commonly known, has been acting for very nearly seventy years. She started out as a student with the Oxford Playhouse in 1952 and made her […]

Rob Williams 0 Comments

What You Need to Know to Watch the Downton Abbey Movie

September 18, 2019

Have you seen or recently rewatched the UK six-season show Downton Abbey? Do you remember enough of it to make sense of the new film — one that doesn’t bother with any backstory exposition at all? Here’s a cheat sheet to remind you of what you need to know to enjoy the Downton Abbey Movie […]

Jill Florio 0 Comments

Movie Review – Downton Abbey

September 14, 2019

At the premier, everyone in the audience clearly enjoyed themselves. A lot. People laughed so much I could barely get Peetimes. And the entire room was so sold out that I had to sit in the very front row, on the edge. All this is to say I need to see the film again. The […]

Jill Florio 0 Comments

What Downton Abbey is About, and How to Binge Watch It

July 7, 2019

I’m doing a 6-season rewatch of UK period drama Downtown Abbey — and Mary Mother of God — I’ve forgotten how melodramatic this show was. There are entire storylines I fast-forward past as I trudge along. (I refuse to pay any more attention the overwrought Anna/Mr. Bates storyline than I absolutely have to.) All The […]

Jill Florio 2 Comments

Movie Review – The Man Who Invented Christmas

November 24, 2017

This charming little film does a nice job ushering in Christmas time at the theaters. I really don’t know how much of this movie was fact or fiction concerning the character of Charles Dickens. In the movie, one moment he’d be in a screaming rage, and the next, a funny, engaging fellow. I think in […]