When veteran missionary Michael Palin returns from 10 years in Africa, he's reassigned by bishop Denholm Elliott to the London red light district in hopes of rehabilitating the street walkers. As timid about sex as he is titillated by it, he's easy prey for the lonely Maggie Smith, married to the aging and extremely wealthy Trevor Howard. But she's a bit of a jealous sort and plots to have her husband bumped off, something Palin must try to stop, unfortunately on the day he's set to marry his long time fiancee Phoebe Nicholls.
Very subtle comedy guides this view of class and manners and sin on both sides of the tracks. There's a shot of the future location of the popular "Downton Abbey", the home of a wealthy widow Palin visits to try to gain funds. Veteran actor Michael Horden provides the narration and is the aging butler to Howard and Smith, often befuddled and possibly senile.
This is the first of two films that Smith and Palin made together (the other being "A Private Function") and while Palin's appearance may seem to indicate it, this is not a Monty Python film. It's nice to see Smith playing a wealthy lady that's not quite like lady Violet from Downton Abbey, and in one part, she indicates that she despises the upper class and is glad to really not be one of them. Interestingly enough, it's set in the same era, so maybe out there in that world was a lookalike great estate where the Crawley's resided. I could listen to Smiths speak all day, but the film nearly is stolen by Horden.
Very subtle comedy guides this view of class and manners and sin on both sides of the tracks. There's a shot of the future location of the popular "Downton Abbey", the home of a wealthy widow Palin visits to try to gain funds. Veteran actor Michael Horden provides the narration and is the aging butler to Howard and Smith, often befuddled and possibly senile.
This is the first of two films that Smith and Palin made together (the other being "A Private Function") and while Palin's appearance may seem to indicate it, this is not a Monty Python film. It's nice to see Smith playing a wealthy lady that's not quite like lady Violet from Downton Abbey, and in one part, she indicates that she despises the upper class and is glad to really not be one of them. Interestingly enough, it's set in the same era, so maybe out there in that world was a lookalike great estate where the Crawley's resided. I could listen to Smiths speak all day, but the film nearly is stolen by Horden.