Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #2010 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-10-22
• Rating: Universal, suitable for all
• Aspect ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English, French, German
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 128 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
The Remains of the Day is one of Merchant-Ivory's most thought-provoking films. Anthony Hopkins is a model of restraint and propriety as Stevens, the butler who "knows his place"; Emma Thompson is the animated and sympathetic Miss Kenton, the housekeeper whose attraction to Stevens is doomed to disappointment. As Nazi appeaser Lord Darlington, James Fox clings to the notion of a gentleman's agreement in the ruthless political climate before World War Two. Hugh Grant is his journalist nephew all too aware of reality, while Christopher Reeves gives a spirited portrayal of an American senator, whose purchase of Darlington Hall 20 years on sends Stevens on a journey to right the mistake he made out of loyalty. As a period drama with an ever-relevant message, this 1993 film is absorbing viewing all the way.

On the DVD: the letterbox widescreen format reproduces the 2.35:1 aspect ratio with absolute clarity. Subtitles are in French and German, with audio subtitles also in English, Italian and Spanish, and with 28 separate chapter selections. The "making-of" featurette and retrospective documentary complement each other with their "during and after" perspectives, while "Blind Loyalty, Hollow Honour" is an interesting short on the question of appeasement and war. The running commentary from Thompson, Merchant and Ivory is more of a once-only diversion. --Richard Whitehouse

Special Features
2.35 Wide Screen
DVD 9
English
Region 2

Synopsis
James Ivory directed this quietly moving film set just prior to World War II. On the large English estate of Lord Darlington (James Fox), a disciplined butler, Stevens (Anthony Hopkins), devotes himself to his duties with rigorous dedication. Like his father (Peter Vaughan) before him, Stevens lives to serve--to bring order and certainty to the estate's minutiae. Though Stevens has the opportunity to break free of this mold in the form of a romance with the spirited housekeeper, Miss Kenton (Emma Thompson), he chooses to remain within the safe structure of the household, even one that has misguided loyalties to Nazi Germany. Christopher Reeve and Hugh Grant costar as men hoping to show Lord Darlington the danger of his allegiances. THE REMAINS OF THE DAY is Merchant-Ivory's follow-up to HOWARDS END, which also starred Hopkins and Thompson; both actors were nominated for Academy Awards for their roles as dutiful servants in the later film.

Customer Reviews

A classic masterpiece
Hopkins delivers one of the finest performances in cinema hisory as the loyal butler, too dedicated to his job to concentrate on the affairs of his own life. Both Hopkins and Thompson show supurb acting and on-screen chemistry that really sets a mark for the British film industry. The film contains a wide variety of fine co-stars with the likes of Hugh Grant and Christopher Reeve who add yet more strength to the overall quality of this film.

Totally recomended to all who expect to be entertained by good acting and high standard drama.

Two of the best acting performances you will ever see
Sir Anthony Hopkins truly is a master when it comes to 'getting into character'. His ability to portray the most subtle of human emotions throughout the film, coupled with his deft ability to become 'Mr Stevens' is one of the best pieces of acting I have ever witnessed. His performance should have won him an Academy award but a superb supporting role by Emma Thompson would also have been deserving of an Oscar. The repressed love between the two characters makes for exasperating viewing as you almost wish they would dispel with the formalities and say how they feel towards one another. However, as a whole the film is beautifully shot and this film is simply superb. While I did not feel as emotional as I did watching 'Shadowlands', I still felt quite sad as the film concluded purely through the supreme activing abilities of Hopkins and Thompson. Wonderful.

The Remains of the Day
This film is one of the most enchanting ones I have ever seen, a most touching and extraordinary story, flawlessly acted by Emma Thompson and Antony Hopkins. The adaptation of Ishiguro's book really captures the essence of the story in spite of the slight differences mostly due to directorial choice. There is a lot of fun here, but also some silent cruelty in the way the story ends. The presence of emotional depth and its manifestation in the actors' gestures and especially their mimic renders the whole movie really lifelike, which - every occasion you see it - makes you hope that the outcome can somehow be different... Although it cannot, I recommend this film to everybody who enjoys romantic-dramatic movies and is not afraid of shedding a few tears.