Upper-class Tony hires servant Hugo Barrett, who turns out to have a hidden agenda.Upper-class Tony hires servant Hugo Barrett, who turns out to have a hidden agenda.Upper-class Tony hires servant Hugo Barrett, who turns out to have a hidden agenda.
- Won 3 BAFTA Awards
- 8 wins & 11 nominations total
Doris Nolan
- People in restaurant: Older Woman
- (as Doris Knox)
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWhen producer and director Joseph Losey was hospitalized for two weeks during this shoot, Dirk Bogarde continued filming assisted by minute, daily instructions over the phone from Losey's hospital bed. When Losey returned to the set, he did not re-shoot any of the script, much to the relief of cast and crew.
- GoofsWhen Tony and Susan arrive at Tony's house in the Mercedes, with an extended visit in mind, they both go into the house and Tony leaves the car's lights on.
- Quotes
Hugo Barrett: I'll tell you what I am. I'm a gentleman's gentleman, and you're no bloody GENTLEMAN!
- ConnectionsFeatured in Stairs (1986)
Featured review
Superb, sinister movie
This is a superb, sinister movie of the very highest class. Unlike the character Tony (James Fox) who is upper class without being high class, if you get my drift. You cannot really sympathise with Tony, who toys with some high falutin' development projects but basically is a wastrel just waiting to be ponced off. Tony is a later-day Bertie Wooster. The sinister element comes from the servant (Dirk Bogarde), who is no Jeeves. Barrett, like Jeeves , is a gentleman's gentleman or valet (not a butler as suggested in some other comments on this film). Tony needs a valet because he is incapable of doing anything much without help. Barrett and his accomplice Vera (Sarah Miles) take Tony to the cleaners, sweeping aside the fiancee Susan (Wendy Craig) in their wake.
Harold Pinter has written the screenplay in similar vein to the superb movie The Accident, also a Losey piece, which I also commend. The cinematography in both movies is simply excellent. The subject matter of The Servant suits Pinter, although much of the screenplay is not really in Pinter's voice. However, there is one scene, set in a restaurant, which includes a tiny cameo by Pinter himself and which contains a short Pinteresque exchange between two women. There is also one tense exchange between Susan and Barrett "do you wear deodorant" etc. which is very reminiscent of a scene in The Caretaker "you stink from arsehole to Thursday" etc. Indeed the story of The Servant resembles The Caretaker in many respects, except that in The Servant the interloper, Barrett, is on top and stays there, whereas in The Caretaker the interloper, Davies, lacks the skill and circumstances to dislodge the incumbent.
There is a homoerotic undercurrent to the film and this works so well because it is an undercurrent (in 1963 there could have been no more than an undercurrent even if they had wanted more). The overt debauchery with Vera and the orgy party towards the end of the film is the only bit of the film that has aged without grace. But I quibble.
This is a truly great film and it deserves to be more widely known.
Harold Pinter has written the screenplay in similar vein to the superb movie The Accident, also a Losey piece, which I also commend. The cinematography in both movies is simply excellent. The subject matter of The Servant suits Pinter, although much of the screenplay is not really in Pinter's voice. However, there is one scene, set in a restaurant, which includes a tiny cameo by Pinter himself and which contains a short Pinteresque exchange between two women. There is also one tense exchange between Susan and Barrett "do you wear deodorant" etc. which is very reminiscent of a scene in The Caretaker "you stink from arsehole to Thursday" etc. Indeed the story of The Servant resembles The Caretaker in many respects, except that in The Servant the interloper, Barrett, is on top and stays there, whereas in The Caretaker the interloper, Davies, lacks the skill and circumstances to dislodge the incumbent.
There is a homoerotic undercurrent to the film and this works so well because it is an undercurrent (in 1963 there could have been no more than an undercurrent even if they had wanted more). The overt debauchery with Vera and the orgy party towards the end of the film is the only bit of the film that has aged without grace. But I quibble.
This is a truly great film and it deserves to be more widely known.
helpful•7914
- ian_harris
- Nov 25, 2002
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Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $45,522
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $7,859
- Jul 28, 2013
- Gross worldwide
- $75,720
- Runtime1 hour 56 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.66 : 1
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