Back to Downton

I was a big fan of the "Downton Abbey" series, and I got Alejandro hooked on the show also.  I bought him the boxed DVD sets of each season to watch in Mexico.  Yes, I know it was a soap opera, but it was a very well-done soap opera.  When the movie sequel to the show came out in the theaters in Mexico, Alejandro and I went to see it, and we enjoyed it.  

While down there on my latest trip, we saw that the second movie, "Downton Abbey - A New Era", was going to premiere in Mexico.  So, on my last weekend there, we went to the Cinemex at a nearby mall to see it.

Although, I enjoyed the movie, I did not think that it was nearly as good as the previous film or the TV series.  The movie is split between two story lines.  The Dowager Countess (Maggie Smith) has inherited a villa in the south of France under mysterious circumstances, and a film company wants to use Downton Abbey to produce their latest silent picture.  The action is very episodic as it goes back and forth in short scenes between France and the Abbey.  By the second half of the movie seems to be more cohesive. However, the dialogue, which was one of the TV series strong points, seemed rather ho-hum.  There are no memorable zingers from Maggie Smith.  The whole plot seems rather contrived, and, in the end, everyone has a happy ending that seems too pat.  Well, a happy ending for everyone except (spoiler alert) the Dowager Countess, who passes away.  With her death, I suspect, the Downton Abbey story has come to an end, and there will be no more sequels to the sequel to the sequel.

If you are a "Downton Abbey" fan, go and see it.  If not, don't bother.