Maggie Smith, Rowan Atkinson & Patrick Swayze in Keeping Mum (2005)

I don't usually include films this recent on this blog, but this one is a charmer. It's a black comedy about a family that lives in a small village in England and their new housekeeper, Grace (Smith). The father is an absent minded preacher (Atkinson) who's a bit out of touch, the kids have problems of their own - Peter the youngest is bullied in school, while Holly lets her teenage libido run a bit wild. The vicar's wife, Gloria (Kristen Scott Thomas) has been neglected and is contemplating an affair with the new American golf instructor in town (Swayze). They hire a new housekeeper who goes about setting things right by eliminating the people causing the problems.

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There's a decided charm about this British film. The devilish glee with which Maggie Smith does away with her adversaries is delightful, and the plot twists are fun to see unfold.

This film was released recently enough to have a DVD release built into the marketing plan. It's more of a future obscurity factor candidate because it's still somewhat fresh in people's memory, but this blog is as much for posterity as it is for now, so I decided to include it. The trailer above is uploaded to YouTube by YarcoTV.

Obscurity factor: 4 (recently released, on DVD, doesn't have a high profile)