Review: “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale”
by Sarah A. Spitz
Beverly Hills, CA (The Hollywood Times) 9/8/25 – Bidding farewell to friends is never easy, but in “Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale” it is less difficult because we are in such familiar territory, even though the times are radically changing. This time, however, the Crawley family will not be back for another run. Thanks to writer Julian Fellowes for giving us so much joy over 15 years of TV, holiday specials and three movies in this franchise.
As the baton — running the estate—passes from noble Lord Robert Grantham (the inimitable Hugh Bonneville) to his daughter, the elegant and determined Lady Mary Talbot (Michelle Dockery), we witness a change in the British class system. Lady Mary has been divorced by her car racing playboy husband and is punished by society in a cruel way. Divorce made women the pariahs, letting the men off easy, but the societal impact is felt by the entire family.
We have the staff of loyal and loving household servants, whose own lives are undergoing great changes, too. The reliable butler Mr. Carson (Jim Carter) is about to retire but his now-wife, head housekeeper Mrs. Hughes (Phyllis Logan), will continue in service. Carson has a hard time letting go, but she is very excited to see his time come to an end after 50 years serving the family. Carson has close relationships with both Lady Mary and Lord Robert and will continue to offer advice and counsel as needed.
Jim Carter and Phyllis Logan as Mr. and Mrs. Carson (aka Mrs. Hughes) Plucky
Daisy (Sophie McShera) who was so naive when she first came to work, now not only knows how to stand up for herself but how to stand up to the snobbish Lord Moreton (Simon Douglas Beale), chairman of the County Fair Committee that she’s been invited to join. As the cook Mrs. Patmore (Lesley Nicol) finds love late in life and is off to marry farmer Mr. Mason (Paul Copley), Daisy will take over her role; she’s now Mrs. Parker, married to Andy Parker, who replaces Mr. Carson as butler.
The Downton Abbey staff eavesdrop on an impromptu concert by Noel Coward. Raquel Cassidy, Kevin Doyle, Sophie McShera, Phyllis Logan, Jim Carter, Brendan Coyle, Joanne Froggatt.
The late Dowager Countess Violet (beloved actress Dame Maggie Smith, whose ruling spirit lingers over the household and the film), was President of the County Fair, a job she clung to with strong opinions and sharp talons. But now it has fallen to her sometime rival Lady Merton (Penelope Wilton) to run the show, and with her, come new ideas, not appreciated by arrogant Lord Moreton but that are far more inclusive of the community at large.
It’s 1930 in London and as the swelling of a jazzy orchestral score follows the camera’s images of brightly flashing neon signs, we enter the Princes Theatre for the finale of Noel Coward’s “Bitter Sweet,” a word that underpins the entire movie. Here we catch up with formerly closeted Tom Barrow (Robert James-Collier), who held many positions at Downton Abbey, but left with film star Guy Dexter (Dominic West), who’s also the star of “Bitter Sweet.” Barrow invites the family backstage, they recognize there’s something more than a professional relationship between the two, and Barrow no longer feels he needs to hide who he really is.
And of course, Anna (Joanne Frogatt), Mary’s lady’s maid and Mr. Bates (Brendan Coyle), Robert’s valet, are happily married, with Anna expecting a child. And perhaps in one of the more surprising turns, Mr. Molesley (Kevin Doyle) has gone from butler to valet to teacher to screenwriter and is now married to the formerly fallen Baxter (Raquel Cassidy), whose second chance as lady’s maid to Robert’s wife Cora Crawley (Elizabeth McGovern) has given her a new lease on life.
Elizabeth McGovern as Cora; Hugh Bonneville as Lord Robert
Remembering that Cora was among the wave of American “dollar brides,” who married into English aristocracy, we now meet her brother Harold (Paul Giamatti), tasked with overseeing their mother’s estate, the source of Downton Abbey and the family’s finances. But there’s trouble ahead as Harold brings with him smooth talking Gus Sambrook (Alessandro Nivola), who “helped” Harold with “investments,” and now is trying to get him out of the financial hole that his “help” has left the family in. He’s come to England partly because he has a horse running in the Royal Ascot race, but more because he’s trying to get hold of what remains of the family’s wealth.
L-R: At the Royal Ascot Race. L-R: Laura Carmichael (holding umbrella as Lady Edith Hexham), Harry Hadden-Paton (Lord Hexham), Hugh Bonneville (Lord Robert), Michelle Dockery (Lady Mary).
I won’t give away the rest of the plot. Suffice to say, there are poignant moments where it’s hard to resist a hankie; and some wonderful turnarounds of fortune along with seriously changed circumstances for the Crawley family. While in prior movies and TV series, Lady Mary has been the focal point, in this film we finally see sister Lady Edith Hexham (Laura Carmichael) step into her own power to help save the day, bringing the long-standing rivalry between the sisters to an end. She’s aided enormously by Tom Branson (Allen Leech), the family’s former chauffeur who married their deceased sister Sybil and went into business with Lady Mary’s ex-husband. He’s come a long way from his “radical” socialist roots to a full-blown capitalist, and he is the one who uncovers Sambrook’s true motives.
Michelle Dockery (Lady Mary) and Joanne Froggatt (Anna)
Thanks to Edith, there’s a visit from the dashing humorist and playwright Noel Coward (a perfectly cast Arty Froushan), who ends up salvaging the Crawley’s reputation, because even landed British aristocrats can’t resist meeting a celebrity.
Laura Carmichael (Lady Edith) and Michelle Dockery (Lady Mary)
As always, the scenery, settings and costumes dazzle. Michelle Dockery is a stunning vision in her colorful, curvy and exquisitely fitted gowns. In this respect, she steals the show, but everyone in the film is beautifully dressed, from the upstairs to the downstairs and it’s their relationships we care about most. But there is always that moment of awe, coming over the hill, to see Downton Abbey standing in its regal splendor in the sunshine.
Please be sure you don’t leave the theater until you watch the end credits. The characters’ worlds and the world around them is changing, and if you stay, you’ll get a chance to see their futures. While it is a bittersweet pill to swallow, there’s laughter along the way as we bid our final farewell to these beloved characters. But as Mrs. Hughes wisely says, “Our lives are living chapters, new ones begin as the old one’s end.”
