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The Servant, 1963

The Servant

English

UK

Rating:7.9
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Profile of The Servant

The Servant can be described as sexual, atmospheric, and thought provoking. The plot revolves around masters and servants, a destructive relationship, and manipulation. The main genres are drama and thriller. In approach, The Servant is serious and realistic. The storytelling is slow paced. It takes place in the 1960s. The Servant is based on a book. The movie has received attention for being critically acclaimed.

Summary of The Servant

In THE SERVANT, Joseph Losey's 10th film made in the U.K. after his 1951 blacklisting in the U.S., the powerful undercurrents of class struggle and sexual repression erupt through the very British patina of civility to expose the poisoned undercurrents of a class-based society. Dirk Bogarde plays Barrett, a seductive and insidious manservant hired by flamboyant playboy Tony (James Fox, in his film debut) to take control of his newly established household. When asked what he wants in a manservant, Tony responds, "Well...everything." And that's just what Barrett takes. As his awe-inspiring efficiency gives way to a suspicious and overarching control, Tony's fiancée, Susan (Wendy Craig), begins to nurture a severe dislike of the omnipresent Barrett. When Barrett brings his girlfriend on as the maid--telling Tony that she is his sister--the inevitable disaster that results sees Barrett (and girlfriend) expelled from the household and Tony left by his fiancée. Alone and left to his own rather debauched devices in his spectacularly appointed bachelor pad, Tony eventually rehires Barrett and the role reversal becomes complete as the two reestablish the household--however, now with Barrett seemingly at its head. Losey's pessimistic obsession with character and the English class system is cynically crystallized in this ironic allegory penned by Harold Pinter, based on the novel by Robin Maugham.

Details

Language: English
Country: UK
Release date: 16 March 1964
Runtime: 112 min

Cast and Crew

Dirk Bogarde

as Hugo Barrett

Sarah Miles

as Vera

Photos

The Servant (1963)
The Servant (1963)

Clips

The Servant
The Servant: Theatrical

Users Reviews

A great movie I just saw for the first time, but I have to say that the last fifteen or twenty minutes of this memorable movie are redundant, tending toward melodramatic overstatement of its themes. (Unless you like sort of Grand Guignol/Guy Madden...
Likely to see
Not for me

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