I have to cop a plea of clueless on this one. For most of the duration of the movie, I was lost. There are so many characters, names, subplots, and nuances whose significance does not become apparent until much later on, that I was left scratching my head in more scenes than not. Even so, this movie left a strong impression.

While this is not the first film to portray the dehumanizing effects of the British aristocracy during the first half of the 20th century, it does a damn poignant job of it. From the first scene to the last, it highlights the contrast between the lives of the servants and those of the nobles they serve. Both are really quite pathetic.

The ruling class are stale, sheltered, bored, and boring. They sit around on their fancy furniture, eating their delicacies, gossiping, making smalltalk, and backstabbing one another. They require everything to be "just so", right down to the last millimeter on the table setting, though they would never have the audacity to state it openly. The pigs of power.

Then there are the servants who scamper around, making sure that every whim is taken care of, even if it requires great personal hardship on their part. They also do their own share of gossiping among themselves, all of it about the nobles. As one of them so astutely observes, they would probably have more concern about some scandal involving a noble than they would about the death of their own mother. They too, of course, keep their secrets and wishes buried deeply beneath.

Now of course, this movie a murder mystery. I won't spoil the ending (hell, that's almost the only portion of the movie where I understood anything that was going on). Let's just say the brilliant inspector has it all under control. lol.

A second viewing of this one would be advisable. I'd probably understand a lot more of the beginning the next time.