"Well, Clarice, have the lambs stopped screaming?"

"The Remains of the Day" is a slow-paced period drama with next to no plot development. Anthony Hopkins' portrayal of Mr. Stevens, the emotionally repressed butler, comes off as excessively cold to the point of sociopathy, making it difficult for the audience to find him relatable or believable.

On the plus side, the film steers clear of wokeness. The plot touches on the Nazis and their treatment of the Jews, but it's relevant to the history-inspired fictional story.

I picked this movie for my wife, who often protests when I choose science fiction movies, including classics like Star Wars. Like many women, she prefers period romances, so I try to find highly rated ones for her. Despite my efforts, she usually ends up disliking my selections, and "The Remains of the Day" was no exception. She bailed before the end. It reminds me of advice from a dating book I read decades ago: do not be the one to choose the movie, or the woman may blame you for not being able to psychically predict the suitability of a movie you have not seen.

The movie is based on the novel of the same name, which apparently has a similar but more satisfying ending. Like the novel, the movie includes a pigeon at the very end. This symbolic pigeon resurfaced my PTSD from the ending of Battlestar Galactica.

This movie showcases great acting of implausible characters. The result is far from a masterpiece, despite so many rave reviews elsewhere. I'm sure I'm not missing anything.