The Servant

Saw The Servant, a nice little psychodrama about an indolent young aristocrat who hires a butler. This butler at first seems to be a sort of Jeeves, a knowing and loyal servant who smiles at his master's foibles and who is subseriant but who of course knows best in the end. We the audience are allowed to see this mask slip a few times however. We're allowed to see how his smiles fade and how he smugly grins when the aristocrat refuses his own girlfriend's medical advice in favor of the butlers'. Soon the butler is using his master's bedroom and is introducing his "sister" who is a maid.

The film's sympathy is clearly on the side of the aristocrat who is fleeced by this conniving butler. As the aristocrat falls prey to the butler's machinations and to his own vices (booze) the soundtrack weeps with violins and the camera leeringly lingers on his wretched face. All the same however, I didn't have a ton of sympathy for this guy who wasn't just showing this butler the door. There's meant to be a kind of abusive relationship caused by the ironical reversal of power, but the law and society are on the aristocrat's side. It feels victim-blame-y but can't this guy just cook his own food?

The point of the film basically seems to be to highlight the deeply fraught situation of having servants in your house. If they aren't stealing the silverware outright, then they're laying more sinister, long-term plans. I sort of can't imagine having servants around my house at all, so this seems like a sensible danger to highlight to me. It is sort of dated however.

At any rate, the film is nice and taught. The drama is good and the hysterics are theatrical and nice. I enjoyed the film, even if it was a bit dismal, and I was invested in the characters. Sort of an aging film, but still a nice one for the moment. Better catch it quick before it sours entirely!