Downton Abbey: A New Era
Downton Abbey: A New Era
The Crawley family goes on a grand journey to the south of France to uncover the mystery of the dowager countess's newly inherited villa. Meanwhile, a Hollywood director seeks to film his latest production at Downton.
Kevin Ward reviewedJuly 12, 2025
Delightfully entertaining, particularly for fans of the show (obviously). Maggie Smith reigns supreme despite disappearing for nearly an hour or so. Even still, she owns this.
I have no idea if they have plans for more movies or continuing this story at all. I know that if they don’t this one feels like it was a fitting send off given some of the things that happen.
Before the film starts Molesley gives a pretty thorough recap of the last film to get you up to speed. So while, you don’t need to have seen the last film to enjoy this one, if you had any interest in watching it without it being spoiled, I would recommend watching it before you go see this new one. I appreciated the recap, though. I’ve seen all of the show and film, but did not remember for the life of me where things had left off.
Additionally, I’m a sucker for movies about making movies and I think the transitional period from silent films to “talkies” is a fascinating one to explore. This film reminded me of Singin’ in the Rain regarding that part of the plot. (And I’m unbelievably looking forward to Babylon later this year)
If Downton is your thing, this will certainly satisfy. I do feel like many of the films heightened emotional moments rely pretty heavily on knowledge of the characters’ past story arcs. For that reason I don’t think will resonate nearly as much for non-fans.