During the 1930s, James Stevens (Anthony Hopkins) serves as a proper English butler to the doltish Lord Darlington (James Fox). Stevens is so dedicated that he forgoes visiting his father on his deathbed in order to serve, and overlooks Darlington’s Nazi sympathies and growing anti-Semitism. Twenty years after his employer’s death, Stevens tries to reconnect with Miss Kenton (Emma Thompson), Darlington’s head housekeeper, and begins to regret his loyalty to his former master.
“The Remains of the Day” is a subtle, thoughtful movie. There are emotional upheavals in it, but they take place in shadows and corners, in secret. The movie has been made by the team of director James Ivory, producer Ismail Merchant, and writer Ruth Prawer Jhabvala. After “A Room with a View” and “Howards End,” they are at the height of their powers, taking us inside a society where tradition is valued, even at the cost of repressing normal human feelings. – Roger Ebert
Starring Anthony Hopkins, Emma Thompson, Christopher Reeve, Hugh Grant, Lena Headey.
Note: Part of the film also takes place in 1958 England.