The Servant

Joseph Losey, UK, 1964, 115 minutes

An extraordinary film which works successfully on several levels, The Servant is essentially a study of servility set in the context of a class-bound Britain.

Tony (James Fox) is a rich young man from the upper class. After buying a large house in Chelsea in which to eventually live with his wife-to-be Susan (Wendy Craig), he hires a deferential man called Barrett (Dick Bogarde) to be his manservant. Tony is well pleased with his purchases, christening the latter a "treasure". It all just seems to good to be true and it is. It soon transpires that this won't be a conventional master-servant relationship. Throughout the film we witness a gradual power shift between Tony and Barrett as the former falls more and more under the latter's spell. All the time, homosexual undertones are never far from the surface.

When released in 1964, The Servant was both an artistic and commercial success. Scripted by Harold Pinter, it's a very revealing film. It questions our assumptions about relationships and in the process reveals the hypocrisy that abounds throughout society. The whole thing is perfectly pulled off. Joseph Losey's direction is exciting and the acting by the whole cast is great. However, it's Dirk Bogarde, by virtue of his haunting presence and pointed glances, that dominates the film.

Review by Spiros Gangas
Taken from EUFS Programme 1992-93