The Servant (1964)
91%RT Audience Score: 89%
Awards & Nominations: 8 wins & 10 nominations total
Thanks in no small part to stellar work from director Joseph Losey and screenwriter Harold Pinter, The Servant strikes at class divisions with artful precision.
The Servant is a film that will leave you feeling like you need a shower, but in a good way. It’s a twisted tale of power dynamics and corruption, with a healthy dose of sexual tension thrown in for good measure. Bogarde’s performance as the scheming servant is nothing short of masterful, and Losey’s direction keeps you on the edge of your seat. If you’re looking for a film that will make you feel a little bit dirty, but in the best possible way, then The Servant is definitely worth a watch.
Production Company(ies)
Sputnik Yleisradio Pandora Filmproduktion,
Distributor
Landau Releasing Organization (LRO)
Release Type
Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
30 Royal Avenue, Chelsea, London, England, UK
MPAA / Certificate
Unrated
Year of Release
1964
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Color:Color
Black and White -
Sound mix:Dolby
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Aspect ratio:1.66 : 1
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Runtime:1h 57m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United Kingdom
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Mar 16, 1964 Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 7, 2015
Genre(s)
Drama
Keyword(s)
starring Dirk Bogarde, James Fox, Sarah Miles, Wendy Craig, Catherine Lacy, Patrick Magee, reviewed by Kevin Maher, TIME Staff, John Russell Taylor, Zachary Wigon, David Denby, Danny Leigh, Neely Swanson, Steph Green, Amber Wilkinson, directed by Joseph Losey, written by Harold Pinter, drama, box office gross $20.7K, Landau Releasing Organization (LRO), MPAA rating, class divisions, corruption, power dynamics, social stratification, homoeroticism, sex, sadistic power games, cinematography, mind games, collaboration, BAFTA winning performance, top horror movies, MCU movies ranked by Tomatometer, renewed & cancelled TV shows 2022, best Netflix series & shows
Worldwide gross: $75,446
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $818,009
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,640
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 89,205
US/Canada gross: $45,522
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $493,564
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,329
US/Canada opening weekend: $7,859
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $85,210
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,998
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
James Fox – Tony
Sarah Miles – Vera
Wendy Craig – Susan
Catherine Lacy – Lady Mounset
Patrick Magee – Bishop
Director(s)
Joseph Losey
Writer(s)
Harold Pinter
Producer(s)
NA
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
8 wins & 10 nominations total
Academy Awards
All Critics (47) | Top Critics (17) | Fresh (42) | Rotten (5)
The drama is masterfully done and exquisitely played…
September 10, 2021 | Rating: 4/5
Kevin Maher
Times (UK)
TOP CRITIC
The film on its most meaningful level is acid splashed into the wound of class distinction. But it is best enjoyed simply as a slick, spooky, frequently spellbinding study of corruption.
April 8, 2020
TIME Staff
TIME Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Even at his worst Losey is never dull, and here he is pretty consistently at his best.
April 8, 2020
John Russell Taylor
Sight & Sound
TOP CRITIC
The viewer is left with not only a portrait of the haves and the have-nots, but a glimpse of what such social stratification provokes — an all-consuming madness as powerful as it is hidden.
April 8, 2020
Zachary Wigon
Village Voice
TOP CRITIC
Losey does masterly work in confined spaces, and Bogarde’s performance as the scheming servant sets the standard for sly corruption.
April 8, 2020
David Denby
New Yorker
TOP CRITIC
With Losey exiled from America by the Hollywood blacklist, and Pinter the bristling voice of young London, the film has the glee of outsiders mid-gatecrash.
April 8, 2020 | Rating: 5/5
Danny Leigh
Financial Times
TOP CRITIC
“The Servant” is a remarkable feat of storytelling, a shot over the bow of class structure, all the more remarkable because there are no sympathetic characters.
April 12, 2022
Neely Swanson
Easy Reader (California)
A rarified experience in masterful manipulation and thrilling commentary on the waning power of the social elite in the Swinging Sixties.
February 10, 2022 | Rating: 5/5
Steph Green
WeLoveCinema
Probably one of the sexiest, sourest and most beautifully photographed British films of all time, The Servant is a masterclass in sadistic power games, thrumming with poisonous erotic energy.
November 12, 2021
Catherine Bray
Film of the Week
A superb performance from Bogarde, this icy but complex character maintains the homoeroticism of its origins, even if it doesn’t play them out literally.
September 16, 2021 | Rating: 4/5
Ben Turner
The Pink Lens
Bogarde, proving not for the first time that he was a whole lot more than just a pretty face, brings a real subtlety and edge to Barratt, letting just enough of the Machiavellian glint through to let us know there’s more to this than first appears.
September 13, 2021 | Rating: 4.5/5
Amber Wilkinson
Eye for Film
The Servant is a masterpiece. A brilliantly acted and beautifully shot drama which tackles class and power dynamics, all to a backdrop of bristling sexual tensions.
September 8, 2021
Rob Aldam
Backseat Mafia…
Plot
The aristocratic Tony (James Fox) moves to London and hires the servant Hugo Barrett (Sir Dirk Bogarde) for all services at home. Barrett seems to be a loyal and competent employee, but Tony’s girlfriend Susan (Wendy Craig) does not like him, and asks Tony to send him away. When Barrett brings his sister Vera (Sarah Miles) to work and live in the house, Tony has a brief hidden affair with her. After travelling with Susan and spending a couple of days in a friend’s house outside London, the couple unexpectedly returns and finds Barrett and Vera, who are actually lovers, in Tony’s room. They are fired and Susan breaks with Tony. Later, Tony meets Barrett alone in a pub and hires him back, and Barrett imposes his real dark intentions in the house, turning the table and switching position with his master.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Dirk Bogarde’s performance as the scheming servant sets the standard for sly corruption.
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