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The Remains of the Day (1993) is a Merchant Ivory Film adapted by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala from the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro. It was directed by James Ivory, produced by Ismail Merchant, and starred Anthony Hopkins as Stevens and Emma Thompson as Miss Kenton, with James Fox, Christopher Reeve, Hugh Grant, and Ben Chaplin. The film was nominated for eight Academy Awards.
Background and production notesA film adaptation of the novel was originally to be directed by Mike Nichols, from a script by Harold Pinter. Nichols was ultimately one of the producers of the Merchant Ivory film. Settings
SynopsisSpoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
Mr. Stevens (Anthony Hopkins), is an emotionally repressed butler who works for Lord Darlington during the run-up to the Second World War. The story is told in flashback, in parallel with a journey he took 20 years later to visit the former housekeeper, Miss Kenton (Emma Thompson), for the ostensible purpose of persuading her to return to service in the house. It is in this later timeframe that the film opens, with an aerial view of Darlington Hall, a stately manor set in rolling English Countryside. Miss Kenton, in voiceover, reads out a letter to Mr. Stevens, in which she gives her reaction to the news of the sale of the house to Mr. Lewis (Christopher Reeve), a retired Congressman, after the death of Lord Darlington (James Fox). These two individuals represent old and new world orders respectively. Kenton also talks about herself. Her marriage has failed and she is nostalgic for the good old days when she worked at the house. Inside, Mr. Lewis has taken up residence, but things are only just being put back into order in preparation for the arrival of Mrs. Lewis (who is never shown). Stevens reminds his new master of a leave of absence he had previously requested. Lewis readily agrees, and even offers Stevens the use of a car. As Stevens walks through the house, he sees various members of staff going about their business. But each fades away like a ghost, revealing that they are but memories of former times, and the house is now largely empty. Stevens takes the car, and begins his journey to visit Miss Kenton.
Kenton is equally efficient at her work, but altogether warmer and less repressed, as strong-willed as Stevens, but more independent-minded. She is initially upset at his insistence that she not refer to his elderly father by his Christian name, even though this is the correct protocol for her because of his lower position of the staff. Later she confronts Stevens who is in denial about his father's increasing forgetfulness. She prevails in a disagreement with him over a prospective employee, and when, at Lord Darlington's command, two German-Jewish servant girls are to be dismissed, she is outraged, pointing out that the likely consequence is that they would be sent back to Germany, and threatens to resign in protest (a threat she later admits to being too cowardly to carry out). She does not accept Stevens's response that his Lordship knows best. As their relationship warms, it becomes clear that she has fallen in love with him, and maybe he with her, though this is ambiguous, as his reserve will not permit him to show it. Nor does the rigid protocol between them properly permit her to express her love toward him. Despite all, she mounts a determined but ultimately unsuccessful campaign to get under his skin. Finally she strikes up a relationship with another man, whom she eventually decides to marry and she leaves the house on the eve of the Second World War. Lord Darlington is a Nazi sympathiser, who uses his influence to broker the political arrangements now called "appeasement". But it is not clear to what extent he supports the Nazis' true agenda, or how much he is deceived by them. He irritates the then Congressman Lewis, one of the dignitaries at a conference, who argues in favour of the Realpolitik of professionals, rather than that of "honourable amateurs". Darlington is quite regretful about dismissing the two Jewish servant girls, but considers their continued employment inappropriate. Later he expresses his remorse at this, and asks what happened to them. Miss Kenton replies that she tried to place them at another house, but was unsuccessful and does not know what became of them. In the "present" of the film, depicted in parallel, but set twenty years after in the late fifties, it is revealed that Darlington died a broken man, his reputation destroyed after his role in the appeasement had been exposed in the papers. When the subject comes up in conversation with various people he meets during his journey, Stevens admits to being the butler at Darlington Hall, but initially denies having served or even met Darlington. It is clear now that he recognises his former master's failings, and several times he indicates that he has regrets about his own life, as does Miss Kenton (now Mrs. Benn) when they finally meet. Kenton declines his offer to return to Darlington Hall, announcing instead that she wanted to stay with her husband and to be near to her soon-to-be-born grandchild. At the end of his visit Stevens departs for Darlington hall in a downpour of rain. Kenton cries, while Stevens, still unable to show any emotion or feeling toward her, simply raises his hat. Spoilers end here.
Cast in order in appearanceImage:Reev2a.jpg Christopher Reeve as Lewis
AwardsThe film was nominated for eight Academy Awards:
The film was also nominated for six BAFTA Awards.
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