Gosford Park

This script and character explanantion helps the viewer to understansnd the English accent and convoluted plot. A good buy.

I purchased the shooting scripting after viewing the movie. The dialogue was so rapid that I had difficulty understanding some of it because of the English accents. The shooting script also described the family and servant relationships. The shooting script does not follow verbatim the movie but close enough. The script has an afterward from Fellowes describing the collaboration and casting effort with Robert Altman. You also learn that Ivor Novello (Northam's character) was the only non-fictional character in the movie. The movie: I loved the music and will buy the soundtrack. Jeremy Northam has a great singing voice but evidently the songs from the movie are his only recordings.

If you've seen the Robert Altman film, "Gosford Park," and especially if you're sure you missed something critical but aren't sure just what it was, this is the book for you. Julian Fellowes' brilliant screenplay not only brings into the foreground all the dialogue and physical action that flowed through the film in typical Altman fashion, but it is accompanied by highly illuminating notes and photos identifying all the players and where they fit in the story. I bought it to use as an aid to my second viewing of the film, at home on DVD, but I found it so fascinating and well written that I read it long before the film was released on video. All screenplays should be this good.

This script is mesmerizing. The subtleties of the dialogue clearly define the constitution of the characters. It makes the film more enjoyable. I now understand more clearly what the actions on the screen represented and what many of the motivations were. So much went into this story that when you think about it, this was an incredible piece of filmmaking.