The Remains of the Day (1993)

A butler who sacrificed body and soul to service in the years leading up to World War II realizes too late how misguided his loyalty was to his lordly employer.

Director:

James Ivory

Writers:

Kazuo Ishiguro (novel), Ruth Prawer Jhabvala (screenplay)

Stars:

Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson, John Haycraft

Nominated for 8 Oscars. Another 16 wins & 32 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Haycraft	...	Auctioneer
Christopher Reeve	...	Lewis
Anthony Hopkins	...	Stevens
Emma Thompson	...	Miss Kenton
Caroline Hunt	...	Landlady
James Fox	...	Lord Darlington
Peter Vaughan	...	Father
Paula Jacobs	...	Mrs. Mortimer, the Cook
Ben Chaplin	...	Charlie, Head Footman
Steve Dibben	...	George, Second Footman
Abigail Hopkins	...	Housemaid (as Abigail Harrison)
Patrick Godfrey	...	Spencer
Peter Cellier	...	Sir Leonard Bax
Peter Halliday	...	Canon Tufnell
Hugh Grant	...	Cardinal

Storyline

A rule bound head butler's world of manners and decorum in the household he maintains is tested by the arrival of a housekeeper who falls in love with him in pre-WWII Britain. The possibility of romance and his master's cultivation of ties with the Nazi cause challenge his carefully maintained veneer of servitude.

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Plot Keywords:

butler | housekeeper | manor | estate | class differences | 

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Genres:

Drama | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for themes

Details

Official Sites:

Merchant Ivory Productions [United States] Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English French German

Release Date:

19 November 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Lo que queda del día

Filming Locations:

Post Office, Limpley Stoke, Somerset, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$22,954,968

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Merchant Ivory Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

134 min

Sound Mix:

70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) Dolby SR (35 mm prints) SDDS (35 mm prints)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of two theatrical movie collaborations of Christopher Reeve and Merchant Ivory Productions. The other being The Bostonians (1984).

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Goofs

Early in the film, the now elderly Stevens sets down a rack of toast on the breakfast table for Congressman Lewis, who is now the master of the house. Lewis is seen reading the paper and talking with Stevens. He doesn't take a slice of toast from the rack. The camera cuts to Stevens, who is bringing a cup of tea to the table. When he arrives at the table, Lewis is halfway into eating a now buttered slice of toast.

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Quotes

Stevens: I'm sorry sir, but I am unable to be of assistance in this matter.

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Connections

Referenced in Skins: Sketch (2008)

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Soundtracks

Roll Along Prairie Moon
Composed by Ted Fio Rito, Albert von Tilzer and Harry MacPherson
Performed by Gracie Fields

User Reviews

Diamond in the Rough

Very deliberate but marvelous study of a lifetime butler in an English noble household. The film does a wonderful parallel examination of the man's life set against the tumult of the 1930s that effectively did away with the British Empire and made him and others like him, as people curiously obsolete.

An extremely rare example of sanity when dealing with the subject of War. Most films as we know too well, concentrate on the futility and bottom line cost in humanity, which is to be expected since generally speaking, an artist will always present this point of view. However in most cases, it's an incomplete and wildly immature handling of the topic. This film addresses if you can believe it, the folly of avoiding War thru appeasement, and hammers home what might have been avoided if the British had called Hitler to the carpet early on, instead of playing chess with him. This is the backdrop; the main story is that of the butler, Stevens, an ostensibly simple character played with unimaginable complexity, by Hopkins. The fascinating examination of one man's sense of duty, a devotion that transcends all other obligations and aspirations in his life has never been so poignantly or expertly presented to an audience. Everything about the film, the supporting cast in particular is a rousing triumph. I cannot overly recommend this.