Sian Clifford Archives

Review: ‘The Ballad of Wallis Island,’ starring Tom Basden, Tim Key and Carey Mulligan

March 26, 2025

by Carla Hay

Tom Basden, Carey Mulligan and Tim Key in “The Ballad of Wallis Island” (Photo courtesy of Focus Features)

Directed by James Griffiths

Culture Representation: Taking place in 2025 on the fictional United Kingdom location of Wallis Island, the comedy/drama film “The Ballad of Wallis Island” features a predominantly white group of people (with one African American) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: An eccentric millionaire invites two former musical partners to reunite for a paid performance on a remote island where he owns a home, and one of the ex-partners might want more than just a musical reunion.

Culture Audience: “The Ballad of Wallis Island” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of the movie’s headliners, British comedic sensibilities and mature stories about confronting the past.

Carey Mulligan and Tom Basden in “The Ballad of Wallis Island” (Photo by Alistair Heap/Focus Features)

“The Ballad of Wallis Island” hits many realistic and bittersweet notes in this comedy/drama about a lonely millionaire who pays for a performance reunion of two ex-lovers who used to be a famous folk-rock duo. The story is the right mix of raw and tender. This well-written and admirably acted movie has many astute observations about how people can let the past affect their expectations for the present and future.

Directed by Richard Griffiths, “The Ballad of Wallis Island” was written by Tom Basden and Tim Key, two of stars of the movie. “The Ballad of Wallis Island” had its world premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and later screened at the 2025 SXSW Film & TV Festival. “The Ballad of Wallis Island” is based on the BAFTA-nominated 2007 short film “The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island,” which was written by Basden and Key, who also co-starred in the film.

The Wallis Island in both movies is a fictional location in the United Kingdom. “The Ballad of Wallis Island” was actually filmed in and around Carmarthenshire, Wales. The entire story takes place on this island. Basden wrote all of the songs that are performed in the movie.

“The Ballad of Wallis Island” (which takes place in 2025) begins by showing jaded rock star Herb McGwyer (played by Basden), who is 44 years old, arriving by row boat to Wallis Island, which is a remote, sparsely populated place with a rocky beach area. He is greeted by Charles Heath (played by Key), the millionaire who has hired Herb to play a private concert on this island. Charles greets Herb warmly and enthusiastically.

But as an indication of things to come, there’s a mishap when Herb stumbles while exiting the boat and falls into the water. His cell phone is not waterproof and get damaged. Herb is going to get more unwelcome surprises.

Charles is socially awkward and has a nervous energy to him. He talks too much and tries too hard to make Herb comfortable, which has the opposite effect and makes Herb feels uneasy. The only thing that Herb has been told by his agent is that Charles is paying Herb a fee of £500,000 (about $645,460 in U.S. dollars in 2025) to perform a private concert on this island.

Herb is currently a solo artist, but he rose to fame in the 2010s as one-half of the folk-rock duo McGwyer Mortimer, which split up in 2016. The other member of this duo is Nell Mortimer (played by Carey Mulligan), who was not only Herb’s musical partner but also his love partner. They were never married but they lived together. For their McGwyer Mortimer collaborations, Herb and Nell sang lead vocals together and wrote songs together, while Herb played guitar.

McGwyer Mortimer was never a superstar act. However, McGwyer Mortimer had enough success to be described in the movie as “the best-selling U.K. folk-rock duo of 2014.” McGwyer Mortimer had a bitter breakup when Herb recorded a solo album without telling Nell. They have not spoken to each other in the nine years since their split. Herb’s solo music is more pop-oriented than McGwyer Mortimer’s music.

For this private Wallis Island concert, Charles has told Herb that Herb has total control over what the set list will be. However, Charles admits that he’s a superfan of McGwyer Mortimer and drops hints that he wants Herb to perform some McGwyer Mortimer songs at the concert. Herb has not performed McGwyer Mortimer songs in years, because he says he wants to put that part of his life behind him. When Charles asks Herb what happened in the McGwyer Mortimer breakup, Herb abruptly replies that the breakup was “mutual.”

Herb starts to become suspicious of Charles when Herb finds out that the “hotel accommodations” that Herb was expecting is really Herb’s rustic mansion. Herb lives by himself and will be doing the cooking and cleaning for Herb, who starts to wonder if Charles is a mentally ill stalker. Herb gets even more apprehensive when Charles admits that Charles will be the only audience member at this concert, which is supposed to take place on a beach.

Herb calls his agent on the nearest land line (a pay phone) and demands to know what’s going on with the concert arrangements. Herb says he’s thinking of backing out of this unusual gig. However, his agent talks Herb out of it because he says that they could use the money and it will be an easy, low-risk concert.

Besides, the next boat off of the island might not arrive for a few days. Charles told Herb that the boat service to and from the island is erratically scheduled. A running gag in the movie is how Herb feels like a fish out of water in this remote area that does not have a lot of modern amenities.

The only store on this island is a small general store owned and operated by a single mother named Amanda (played by Sian Clifford), who does her best to accommodate requests when the store doesn’t have what a customer is seeking. Amanda’s son Marcus (played by Luka Downie), who’s about 12 or 13 years old, helps her with the store. Amanda doesn’t know that Herb is famous and has never heard of McGwyer Mortimer. “I prefer ABBA,” she says.

Charles pays Herb £50,000 in cash up front to prove that Charles has access to this type of money. However, it’s still not enough to convince Herb that this gig isn’t a scam. Herb demands to know how Charles can afford to pay for this concert. And that’s when Charles tells Herb that he’s a retired nurse who won the lottery twice. Charles show Herb the proof that Charles is telling the truth.

As already revealed in the movie’s trailer, Charles has yet another big surprise for Herb: Nell arrives on Wallis Island too. And she’s not alone: She’s brought her easygoing American husband Michael (played Akemnji Ndifornyen) with her. And that’s how Herb finds out that Nell was hired by Charles to perform at a McGwyer Mortimer reunion concert. Herb is too embarrassed to admit that he didn’t know, so he pretends to Nell that he knew all along.

The rest of “The Ballad of Wallis Island” shows the uncomfortable tensions and surprising developments that happen during this sensitive reunion. Herb has unresolved feelings for Nell. But does she feel the same way? After the McGwyer Mortimer breakup, Nell quit the music business and now lives with Michael in Portland, Oregon, where she has a small business making chutney. Will this reunion with Herb reignite Nell’s passion for making music?

Those questions are answered in the movie, which has a subplot about bachelor Charles being attracted to Amanda, but he’s too shy to do anything about it. Charles is the comic relief in the movie, but he’s not made to look like a total buffoon. Charles is very aware that he’s a goofy dork and cheerfully accepts it. “The Ballad of Wallis Island” invites viewers to laugh with Charles more than laugh at him. And just like Herb, Charles is lonely and having trouble letting go of a past heartbreak, which is revealed in the movie.

“The Ballad of Wallis Island” is exceptional in how it sneaks up on viewers and tells a story that doesn’t necessarily go where most people might think it will go. The acting performances are wonderful, but they’re not the type of “look at me” showcases that will be awards bait. As for the songs in the movie, they are pleasant and catchy but not outstanding. The real magic is in the relationships between these very believable characters, who have different ways of learning about an art that’s different from music—the art of gracefully letting go of the past in order to move on in the present.

Focus Features will release “The Ballad of Wallis Island” in select U.S. cinemas on March 28, 2025, with an expansion to more U.S. cinemas on April 18, 2025.

Review: ‘Young Woman and the Sea,’ starring Daisy Ridley, Tilda Cobham-Hervey, Stephen Graham, Kim Bodnia, Christopher Eccleston and Glenn Fleshler

May 31, 2024

by Carla Hay

“Young Woman and the Sea”

Directed by Joachim Rønning

Culture Representation: Taking place in the United States and Europe from 1914 to 1926, the dramatic film “Young Woman and the Sea” (based on true events) features a predominantly white cast of characters (with one black person) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: Champion swimmer Trudy Ederle, who becomes the first woman to swim across the English Channel, defies expectations and sexism in her quest for greatness.

Culture Audience: “Young Woman and the Sea” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of “against all odds” stories about underestimated athletes or women in patriarchal societies.

Ethan Rouse, Kim Bodnia, Jeanette Hain, Daisy Ridley and Tilda Cobham-Hervey in “Young Woman and the Sea” (Photo by Elena Nenkova/Disney Enterprises, Inc.)

“Young Woman and the Sea” is a traditionally made sports drama that might seem old-fashioned to some viewers. However, this biopic about champion swimmer Trudy Ederle has solid acting and themes that don’t get outdated, such as triumphing over obstacles. People who like stories about iconic achievers who are determined but modest about their accomplishments will find plenty to like about how Ederle is portrayed in this inspirational film.

Directed by Joachim Rønning, “Young Woman and the Sea” is based on Glenn Stout’s 2009 non-fiction book “Young Woman and the Sea: How Trudy Ederle Conquered the English Channel.” The movie’s adapted screenplay was written by Jeff Nathanson. Gertrude “Trudy” Ederle (who was born in 1905 and died in 2003) is considered one of the best competitive female swimmers of all time, not just because of the records she broke but also because of the barriers she broke for other female swimmers. There’s nothing complicated about this movie, which is told in mostly chronological order. For the purposes of this review, the real Trudy Ederle will be called Ederle, while the Trudy Ederle character in the movie will be called Trudy.

“Young Woman and the Sea” begins in the mid-1920s, by showing Trudy in her early 20s (played by Daisy Ridley) about to dive into a large body of water to train for her historic swim across the English Channel. She is covered in an unnamed lubricant (it looks like Vaseline), which is what long-distance swimmers use to help deal with cold-water temperatures. Trudy is singing what the movie later reveals to be her favorite song: the 1920 foxtrot tune “Ain’t We Got Fun,” written by Richard A. Whiting, Raymond B. Egan and Gus Kahn.

The movie then shows an extensive flashback to Trudy’s childhood in 1914, when she was 9 years old. Trudy (played Olive Abercrombie) has made a near-miraculous recovery from measles that left her bedridden and her family worried that she might die. However, the measles would lead to Trudy having hearing loss that got worse when she was in her 30s and eventually became legally deaf.

Trudy lives in New York City with her German immigrant parents; her older sister Margaret “Meg” Ederle; and her younger brother Henry Ederle Jr. (“Young Woman and the Sea” was actually filmed in Bulgaria.) Meg is about two or three years older than Trudy. Henry is about five or six years younger than Trudy. Tilda Cobham-Hervey has the role of young-adult Meg. Lilly Aspell has the role of adolescent Meg. Raphael J. Bishop has the role of pre-teen Henry. Ethan Rouse has the role of teenage Henry.

Henry Ederle Sr. (played by Kim Bodnia) is a butcher who believes in a strict, patriarchal way of living, where men are supposed to be thought of and treated as superior to women. Gertrude Ederle (played by Jeanette Hain) is strong-willed and thinks that women and girls should not have restrictions placed on them because of gender. In other words, Gertrude is a feminist before the word “feminist” was invented.

Getrude’s belief in gender equality plays a crucial role in giving Trudy the motivation and opportunities to become a champion swimmer. Early on in the movie, when Ederle kids are all underage, Meg and Trudy can see from their home that ship has gone up in flames at a nearby port. Gertrude tells them the tragic news that many people (mostly women) on the ship drowned because they didn’t know how to swim, and they stayed on the burning boat rather than risk trying to swim to shore nearby.

Henry Sr. says that Henry Jr. will definitely learn how to swim, but Meg doesn’t need to learn. Gertrude strongly disagrees and says that Meg and Trudy have a right to learn how to swim, just like anyone else does. Gertrude believes that knowing how to swim is a life-saving skill that shouldn’t be deprived or bestowed upon people based on gender. Henry Sr. also believes that it isn’t ladylike for girls or women to be in swimming competitions.

In the meantime, Trudy is determined to learn how to swim, even though her father disapproves. Trudy’s doctor has also warned that Trudy shouldn’t get too much water in her ears, or it could cause more hearing loss for Trudy. After much persistence from Trudy, her father agrees to teach Trudy how to swim at Coney Island’s beach. Due to her recent illness, Trudy cannot use a public swimming pool.

Trudy is a natural talent and soon becomes obsessed with swimming. When Trudy and Meg are teenagers, Henry Sr. is still adamant that they can’t become competitive swimmers. So what does Getrude do? She enrolls Trudy and Meg in an all-female swimming team, led by a tough-but-caring coach named Charlotte “Eppy” Epstein (played by Sian Clifford), who gives the two sisters the training to become more disciplined swimmers.

It isn’t long before Trudy outshines Meg as a swimmer in competitons. Meg seems to have some envy about Trudy’s superior swimming skills, but Meg’s envy doesn’t fester into full-blown jealousy, mainly because Meg is not as passionate about swimming as Trudy is. Trudy puts swimming above everything else in her life. In the movie, Trudy is never shown having any friends or dating anyone. Meg is Trudy’s closest confidante.

Meg starts to rebel a little against her father. One night, Meg comes home late and smelling like liquor. Meg admits to her disapproving father that she’s been on a date with a guy named Chip Anderson (played by Hyoie O’Grady), who has been courting Meg and will soon ask Meg to marry him. Henry Sr. flies into a rage because he thinks his daughters should marry men of German heritage. (The movie takes a short detour into Meg’s love life, which doesn’t go according to what Meg really wants.)

Meanwhile, a montage shows that Trudy wins several swimming competitions on a local, state, and then national level, often breaking swimming records along the way. It’s inevitable that Trudy trains for the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris. And then, in 1926, Trudy decides to take on her biggest challenge of all: swimming across the English Channel, which is a feat that had never been accomplished by a woman at the time.

“Young Woman and the Sea” has the expected scenes of men trying to block or discourage Trudy’s ambitions, simply because of her female gender. Trudy’s father is one of the chief culprits of this sexism. And for a long time, he refuses to celebrate Trudy’s accomplishments. Trudy’s mother Gertrude is always supportive of her, but Trudy wants her father’s approval too.

For her Olympic training, Trudy gets a wealthy sponsor named James Sullivan (played by Glenn Fleshler), a pompous blowhard who wants Trudy to be among the six American female swimmers whom he’s sponsoring for the Olympics. James insists that Trudy and the other women swimmers have a male coach. Jabez Wolffe (played by Christopher Eccleston), a Scottish has-been professional swimmer, becomes Trudy’s coach. It becomes obvious early on that Jabez is very jealous that Trudy is more talented than he could ever be.

Not all of the men in Trudy’s life are sexist and condescending. Trudy meets a rebellious sailor named Bill Burgess (played by Stephen Graham), who’s got a similar spirit of non-conformity as Trudy has. The first time that Trudy sees Bill, he’s at the Coney Island beach being arrested for swimming naked. Bill ends up becoming Trudy’s sailor navigator during her English Channel swimming marathon. Trudy also develops a friendly acquaintance with another swimmer named Benji Zammit (played by Alexander Karim), who also wants to swim across the English Channel.

Even if viewers have never heard of Trudy Ederle before seeing this movie, “Young Woman Sea” has no real surprises because it checks all the usual plot boxes and follows the same formula as many other sports movies. A noticeable flaw of the movie is that it doesn’t accurately depict the type of hearing loss that the real Ederle had during this time in her life. There’s a brief mention of her hearing loss but then Trudy’s hearing loss is never really mentioned or shown again.

The acting performances fit the tone of the movie very well. Ridley is quite good but not outstanding in “Young Woman and the Sea,” which unrealistically makes Trudy look like she has no personality flaws. The swimming scenes are thrilling though, with Oscar Faura’s cinematography making viewers feel immersed in the water along with Trudy, even in some of the scenes that are obviously not in a real ocean. Unlike the treacherous waters that Trudy swims in, “Young Woman and the Sea” offers nothing edgy or unpredictable. The movie is a perfectly fine option for anyone who wants to see a story that can appeal to many generations of people.

Walt Disney Pictures released “Young Woman and the Sea” in select U.S. cinemas on May 31, 2024.

Review: ‘Chevalier’ (2023), starring Kelvin Harrison Jr., Samara Weaving, Lucy Boynton, Minnie Driver, Sian Clifford, Alex Fitzalan and Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo

April 21, 2023

by Carla Hay

Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Joseph Prowen in “Chevalier” (Photo by Larry Horricks/Searchlight Pictures)

“Chevalier” (2023)

Directed by Stephen Williams

Culture Representation: Taking place in France, from the 1750s to the 1790s, the dramatic film “Chevalier” (a biopic of musician/fencer Joseph Bologne, also known as Chevalier de Saint-Georges) features a predominantly white group of people (with a few black people) representing the working-class, middle-class and royalty.

Culture Clash: Bologne experiences racism, an illicit love affair and treacherous politics in his journey to becoming a celebrated musician and fencer.

Culture Audience: “Chevalier” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of history-based biopics and classical music and don’t mind if a movie set in 1700s France has some modern touches that didn’t exist in that century.

Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo in “Chevalier” (Photo courtesy of Searchlight Pictures)

“Chevalier” has its share of corny “only in a movie” moments, but the essential truths of oppression and racial barriers in society have the most resonance in this story. Kelvin Harrison Jr. gives an admirable performance. The costume designs are gorgeous. You don’t have to be fan of classical music to enjoy the movie, but it certainly helps. History purists will be wincing through some of the story, because it’s yet another biopic that takes liberties with facts, in order to make the movie more dramatic.

Directed by Stephen Williams and written by Stefani Robinson (who is one of the producers of the movie), “Chevalier” (which takes place in France, mostly in Paris) tells the story of Joseph Bologne, also known as the Chevalier de Saint-Georges, who lived from 1745 to 1799. He the first black person to conduct a major orchestra in France. He was also renowned for being a champion fencer. The movie depicts Joseph mostly in his 20s, 30s and 40s, but there are flashback scenes to his teens and younger childhood. “Chevalier” had its world premiere at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival.

The movie tells viewers right from the beginning that Joseph (played as an underage teen and as an adult by Harrison) was so phenomenal, he outshone Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (played by Joseph Prowen) in concert. The opening scene shows Mozart conducting an orchestra in Paris, sometime in the 1780s, and asking the audience for requests. Joseph confidently strolls into the concert hall and asks to play the violin alongside Mozart.

Mozart looks slightly amused and asks, “Who put you up to this?” Joseph says, “Myself, monsieur.” Mozart calls Joseph a “dark stranger” and smugly says, “I hope this won’t be too embarrassing for you.” They proceed to play the violin, as if it’s a dueling competition of musicianship.

And in the end, Mozart is the one who’s embarrassed, as Joseph proves that he’s the more talented violinist. Joseph is so masterful, the crowd gives him a standing ovation. An infuriated Mozart runs off stage and fumes, “Who the fuck was that?” Clearly, “Chevalier” is not a movie that wants to look historically accurate.

This scene is a perfect example of how “Chevalier” tries but doesn’t always succeed in balancing hokey drama with regal gravitas. It’s a movie with a lot of 1700s pomp and circumstance, but with a modern approach to melodrama that takes viewers out of this time period, especially in a lot of the dialogue that sounds too contemporary. The movie’s messages about racism sometimes get bogged down in too much exposition, but luckily the cast is talented enough to elevate the material.

If some of the scenes in “Chevalier” look over-the-top and fabricated for a movie, that’s because the real life of Bologne did not get a lot of historical documentation. However, you don’t have to be a historian or a classical music expert to know that the opening scene definitely looks fake. Mozart running off stage in humiliation because of a newcomer rival—if it happened in real life—would have gone down in history as one of the most notorious stories about him.

What the movie does depict that is historically accurate is that at the age of 7, Joseph (played by Reuben Anderson) was taken by his white French American father to live in France, where Joseph was educated and lived for the rest of his life. Joseph’s father was a wealthy plantation owner named Georges de Bologne Saint-Georges, and his mother was an enslaved black woman named Nanon, who was originally from Senegal. In real life, Georges de Bologne Saint-Georges lived in the Caribbean archipelago Guadeloupe, which was a colony of France at the time.

The “Chevalier” movie changes the location of Joseph’s birthplace from Guadeloupe to Louisiana. His father’s name has the English-language spelling of George Bologne (played by Jim High), a French American who spends time at his plantations in Louisiana and Guadeloupe. Joseph’s mother Nanon (played by Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo) is depicted as being originally from Senegal and brought to North America in enslavement, just like in real life. The “Chevalier” filmmakers perhaps made Joseph have a connection to Louisiana because Harrison is American, and his American accent can be heard in much of the dialogue.

Before abandoning his son in France at the private Academie de La Boëssière, George instills the belief in Joseph that Joseph must be the best at anything he does if he is going to survive and succeed. The academy’s owner Tessier de La Boëssière (played by Ben Bradshaw) reluctantly enrolls Joseph in the school and warns George that Joseph people at the school will not be kind to this “Negro bastard.” In real life, Joseph had an older white half-brother named Pierre (they had the same father), who was already enrolled at the academy when Joseph was admitted as a sudent. However, the “Chevalier” movie erases Pierre, probably to make it look more dramatic that Joseph felt isolated by not knowing any at the academy as a new student.

“Chevalier” shows the expected racist bullying that Joseph received throughout his life. But the movie also shows how he achieved greatness, despite many obstacles put in his way. Expect to see several montages of him practicing his music or fencing, as if his life depended on it, because in many ways, his life really did depend on it. Joseph eventually became well-known for his talents and got respect from members of high society.

This notoriety resulted in a volatile friendship with the fun-loving but very spoiled Marie Antoinette (played by Lucy Boynton), the queen of France, who introduced him to powerful members of her inner circle. This inner circle includes Marie’s cousin Philippe (played by Alex Fitzalan), the Duke of Orleans. Philippe becomes Joseph’s close confidant, and their friendship leads to an important political alliance.

As already revealed in the trailer for “Chevalier,” Nanon reunites with Joseph around the time that he becomes a famous musician and a champion fencer. The reunion doesn’t go smoothly at first, because Nanon represents a part of Joseph’s life that he wants to keep in the past. Eventually, Nanaon and Joseph become close when he begins to understand that he should embrace and appreciate his African American heritage.

“Chevalier” is not subtle in its messages about how black people who achieve success in a predominantly white culture have to decide how much “black culture” will be part of their identity when interacting with white people. The way that Joseph chooses to wear his hair in public (African-styled cornrow braids or European-made wigs) is a manifestation/symbol about how much of his “black” or “white” identity that he wants to express.

Some of the best aspects of “Chevalier” have to do with Joseph confronting his “assimilation” into white French society and what that assimilation will cost him, in terms of his self-respect, his relationship with his mother and his career. Joseph has to deal with constant condescension from white people who think that Joseph will never be equal to them, simply because he is not white. Marie Antoinette often treats him like “charity case” who needs her and other white people to “save” him. At one point, Joseph assertively says to her: “Not everything is about you people.”

The movie’s strongest non-musical scenes are those between Joseph and the women in his life: his kind and patient mother Nanon, his unpredictable friend Marie Antoinette, and his conflicted lover Marie-Josephine (played by Samara Weaving), an opera singer who is an unhappy marriage to a cruel and wealthy man named Marquis De Montalembert (played by Marton Csokas). Marie-Josephine was the one who introduced Joseph to her husband, who could immediately sense that there was an attraction between her and Joseph. Privately, Marquis De Montalembert tells Joseph (who has a reputation for being a ladies’ man) that he doesn’t “wish for my Marie-Josephine to become a whore.”

Joseph also has to navigate the power and politics of getting investments for an original opera that he is composing and plans to conduct. Marie-Josephine’s cousin La Guimard (played by Minnie Driver), who is a rich opera singer, expresses interest in being an investor, but she enjoys manipulating Joseph, because she knows she has the financial upper hand. Joseph ends up wanting Marie-Josephine to be the star of his opera. Marquis De Montalembert doesn’t want Marie-Josephine to take the job, for obvious reasons.

Another affluent potential investor is Madame De Genlis (played by Sian Clifford), who believes in Joseph’s talent, but she wants some creative control that he’s reluctant to give. She says she will finance the opera if he bases it on a story that she wrote. Observant viewers will notice that no matter how exceptional Joseph can be, it causes resentment among racist people who will use any excuse to try to tear him down.

“Chevalier” does not make Joseph look like a saint. He can be stubborn and arrogant to a fault. His affair with Marie-Josephine is an example of his selfish recklessness. And even though Joseph thinks he loves Marie-Josephine, it’s pretty obvious that people will get very hurt by this love affair. The movie takes an abrupt turn into some melodrama that comes as a result of this extramarital relationship.

Despite some cringeworthy lines of dialogue in “Chevalier” and occasionally slow pacing of the movie, Harrison holds everything together and keeps things watchable in his intriguing portrayal of this complex character. Boynton has some memorable moments in her performance as the imperious and fickle queen Marie Antoinette. The movie’s costume design by Oliver García and production design by Karen Murphy are truly feasts for the eyes.

The music of “Chevalier” is also noteworthy, including a vibrant original score by Kris Bowers and production and musical arrangements of Bologne’s music by Michael Abels. In terms of overall storytelling, “Chevalier” is no masterpiece. However, the movie has enough compelling moments and good acting to maintain viewer interest in this very dramatic version of an extraordinary and talented life.

Searchlight Pictures released “Chevalier” in U.S. cinemas on April 21, 2023.

Review: ‘See How They Run’ (2022), starring Sam Rockwell, Saoirse Ronan, Adrien Brody, Ruth Wilson, Harris Dickinson, Reece Shearsmith and David Oyelowo

September 14, 2022

by Carla Hay

Sam Rockwell and Saoirse Ronan in “See How They Run” (Photo by Parisa Taghizadeh/Searchlight Pictures)

“See How They Run” (2022)

Directed by John Patton Ford

Culture Representation: Taking place in London, mostly in 1953, the comedy/drama film “See How They Run” features a predominantly white cast of characters (with some black people and Asian people) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: A jaded police inspector and his rookie partner, who have opposite personalities and contrasting styles of working, investigate serial murders that appear to be linked to the planned-for movie adaptation of Agatha Christie’s murder mystery play “The Mousetrap.”

Culture Audience: “See How They Run” will appeal primarily to people who are interested in movies that are inspired by Agatha Christie mystery novels.

Ruth Wilson, Reece Shearsmith, Harris Dickinson, Sian Clifford, Pearl Chanda, Jacob Fortune Lloyd, David Oyelowo and Ania Marson in “See How They Run” (Photo by Parisa Taghizadeh/Searchlight Pictures)

“See How They Run” doesn’t quite reach the classic heights of Agatha Christie murder mysteries, which are this comedy/drama movie’s admitted inspirations. However, it’s worth watching for the entertaining performances and clever observations of showbiz. The last third of “See How They Run” stumbles a bit in how the mystery is revealed, but it doesn’t take away from the movie’s overall appeal to viewers who are interested in British movies that poke fun at the entertainment industry in a story about solving crimes.

“See How They Run” is the feature-film directorial debut of Tom George, who is known for directing in British television. His TV credits include his BAFTA-winning work directing the BBC comedy show “The Country,” as well as the BBC comedy “Defending the Guilty.” His keen sense of comedic timing serves “See How They Run” very well, since most Agatha Christie-styled movies definitely do not have the screwball comedy qualities that are in “See How They Run.” Mark Chappell wrote the “See How They Run” screenplay, which is better at crafting characters than it is as explaining some of the unanswered questions in this murder mystery.

Every movie inspired by Agatha Christie’s writing has a fairly large ensemble of characters who are considered suspects or persons of interests in the murder case until the real killer or killers can eventually be revealed. The body count in “See How They Run” is a lot lower than a typical story of this ilk, but that just makes it more intriguing to guess who’s behind the murders. Fortunately, the movie isn’t cluttered with too many chararacters, so it’s easy to keep track of who everyone is.

“See How They Run,” which is set primarily in 1953 London, also balances multiple layers, because it’s a story with several flashbacks, as well as a whodunit that’s directly tied to the real-life, long-running West End production of Christie’s “The Mousetrap.” Although most of the characters in “See How They Run” are fictional, some of the characters are based on real people, including Christie herself. The movie does a better job at handling the flashbacks than it does in trying to show parallels between “The Mousetrap” and the original screenplay for “See How They Run.”

“See How They Run” opens with a scene that is later referred to in flashbacks. In 1953, on London’s West End, several people have gathered for a nighttime party at the Dominion Theatre, to celebrate the 100th performance of “The Mousetrap.” Among the partiers are members of the cast and some people who are involved in making a feature film version of “The Mousetrap,” including American director Leo Köpernick (played by Adrien Brody), who has been blacklisted in Hollywood, due to the Red Scare targeting suspected Communists.

The night of this party will also be the last night of Leo’s life, since he will be murdered in a backstage costume shop by a mystery person wearing a trench coat, a mask and a fedora. The murderer definitely looks like a man, but with these mystery stories, the killer’s gender can’t always be presumed. At first, Leo is attacked by the murderer trying to strangle Leo with a wire. Leo breaks free, but is killed when the murderer beats him to with a fire extinguisher.

A now-dead Leo then provides intermittent narration for the rest of the movie. Not everyone who watches this movie will like this “voice from the dead” narration. However, it’s a director choice that’s quite unconventional and provides a perspective that doesn’t make things easy for viewers, because Leo is eventually exposed as a sleazy character who might be an unreliable narrator.

The two cops who end up being the primary investigators for Leo’s murder are two very opposite people: Inspector Stoppard (played by Inspector Sam Rockwell) is a world-weary alcoholic, who approaches the investigation with a skepticism where he doesn’t come to any conclusions until he sees indisputable evidence. Constable Stalker (played by Saiorse Ronan) is an eager-to-please rookie who’s an Irish immigrant with a tendency to jump to conclusions without hard evidence.

Predictably, Stoppard and Stalker often clash, with Stoppard embodying the cliché of an older cop who’s forced to work with a younger cop and is frequently annoyed by the younger cop in the process. It doesn’t help that Stoppard is very sexist and doesn’t believe that police detective work is a job that women can do as well as men. The supervisor for Stoppard and Stalker is a police commissioner named Harrold Scott (played by Tim Key), who is more concerned about his own public-relations image and career ambitions than he is about getting justice for the crimes investigated by his department.

It isn’t long before Stoppard and Stalker have a group of people to interview and investigate. They include:

Petula “Choo” Spencer (played by Ruth Wilson), the no-nonsense producer/chief investor of “The Mousetrap” play. It’s later revealed that she has a motive to prevent the movie version of “The Mousetrap” from getting made.
Mignon Saunders (played by Ania Marson), Petula’s eccentric mother. Mignon doesn’t say much, but does that mean she knows more than she’s telling?
John Woolf (played by Reece Shearsmith), the wealthy film producer of “The Mousetrap” movie. (This character is based on the real John Woolf.) John is the person who decided to hire Leo, because of Leo’s talent and track record of making award-winning films.
Ann Saville (played by Pippa Bennett Warner), John’s administrative assistant and his mistress. Ann is every much in love with John and expects him to eventually divorce his wife and marry Ann.
Edana Romney (played by Sian Clifford), John’s wife, who considers herself to be an amateur psychic. It’s revealed in the movie if she knows about John’s affair with Ann.
Mervyn “Merv” Cocker-Norris (played by David Oyelowo), the pompous screenwriter for “The Mousetrap” movie. Mervyn and Leo were feuding because Leo didn’t like Mervyn’s script, but Mervyn refused to do a rewrite. Not long before Leo was murdered, Leo and Mervyn had a very public argument where Mervyn threatened to kill Leo.
Giovanni “Gio” Bigotti (played by Jacob Fortune-Lloyd), Mervyn’s Italian lover, who is fairly quiet and very supportive of Mervyn. Giovanni and Mervyn are a gay couple in a “don’t ask, don’t tell way,” where they don’t make it obvious but they don’t try to hide the nature of their relationship either.
Dennis (played by Charlie Cooper), a Dominion Theatre usher who reported that he saw a “suspicious”-looking man lurking in the area where Leo’s murdered body was found.
Richard “Dickie” Attenborough (played by Harris Dickinson), the hotshot actor who’s the star of “The Mousetrap” play. Based on the real Attenborough, this character wants to do everything possible to keep the play going
Sheila Sim (played by Pearl Chanda), Dickie’s actress wife (based on the real Sheila Sim), whose career has become overshadowed by Dickie’s. Sheila and Dickie, who are co-stars in “The Mousetrap” play, have been experiencing some problems in their marriage, and their relationship has become somewhat strained.

World-renowned mystery writer Christie (played by Shirley Henderson) makes an appearance in the last third of the movie and does something awkward that isn’t handled very well or is made believable, considering that she is a crime aficionado. This tricky scene is played for laughs, but it could have been thought out in a much better way. Her devoted husband Max Mallowan (played by Lucian Msamati) and her prickly butler Fellowes (played by Paul Chahidi) also make appearances toward the end of the movie.

Constable Stalker is often a bundle of nervous energy when she’s with Inspector Stoddard. She talks quickly and is eager to share her knowledge of movies (she’s a big fan) and crime novels, but he shows disdain for this fiction entertainment influencing her thoughts as police investigator. Later, when Constable Stalker and Inspector Stoddard spend some time alone together, they open up to each other about their personal lives. She’s a widow with a son and a daughter. He’s divorced (his wife left him) with no children. Constable Stalker eventually finds out about Inspector Stoddard’s alcoholism and sees how vulnerable his alcoholism makes him.

Of course, every murder mystery reveals secrets about the people who are being investigated. Leo is not a sympathetic victim. The police find out that he has a long history of sexually harassing and possibly sexually assaulting women. Leo kept meticulous records of the women he encountered.

As an example of Leo being a sexual predator, he was staying at the luxury Savoy Hotel (in a suite paid for by John), where the maids eventually refused to go in Leo’s suite because of how badly he was sexually harassing them. On the night that Leo was murdered, he and Dickie got into a huge physical brawl in front of the party crowd. The fight happened because Leo sexually propositioned Sheila, by implying that Leo would cast her in “The Mousetrap” movie if she had sex with him.

“See How They Run” is filmed and performed much like how this movie would look if it really were filmed in 1953. This type of retro filmmaking won’t appeal to everyone, but the movie does a competent job of recreating the British culture, fashion and production design of that era. There are signs and not-so-subtle indications that Constable Stalker is an outsider not just because she’s a woman in a very male-dominated field but also because she’s an Irish immigrant living in the England.

Rockwell and Ronan, who are both talented in whatever they do, have a crackling chemistry as Stoppard and Stalker that intentionally starts off as uncomfortable to watch but becomes somewhat endearing as Stoppard and Stalker begin to trust each other in this “odd couple” police partnership. Oyelowo is also a standout because he looks like he’s having fun playing the pretentious and flamboyant Mervyn, who has some of the best lines in the movie.a

“See How They Run” falters with a few murky plot developments that raise questions that aren’t really answered. One of them involves the identity of Stoppard’s ex-wife. However, the movie does effectively lampoon a lot of the stereotypes of murder mystery movies, such as the use of flashbacks and using the most obvious suspects as red herrings. There are also many satirical moments about what showbiz people say and do in pursuit of fame, fortune and power.

Are there much better murder mystery movies in the world? Of course. “See How They Run” isn’t among the cream of the crop. However, for people who are inclined to like this genre and like watching talented cast members who give capable performances, this movie can offer some enjoyable escapism.

Searchlight Pictures will release “See How They Run” in U.S. cinemas on September 16, 2022. The movie was released in the United Kingdom on September 9, 2022.

Review: ‘The Duke’ (2021), starring Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren

May 9, 2022

by Carla Hay

Helen Mirren and Jim Broadbent in “The Duke” (Photo courtesy of *Pathé* UK/Sony Pictures Classics)

“The Duke” (2021)

Directed by Roger Michell

Culture Representation: Taking place primarily in the United Kingdom cities of Newcastle and London, in 1961 and briefly in 1965, the comedy/drama film “The Duke” features a cast of nearly all-white characters (with one person of Pakistani heritage) representing the working-class and middle-class.

Culture Clash: An anti-establishment senior citizen, who is grieving over the years-ago death of his teenage daughter, pleads not guilty in his trial for stealing Francisco Goya’s portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London.

Culture Audience: “The Duke” will appeal primarily to people interested in old-fashioned but well-acted period dramas about feisty and opinionated British people that explore issues of rebelling against society and dealing with personal grief.

Fionn Whitehead and Jack Bandeira in “The Duke” (Photo by Nick Wall/*Pathé* UK/Sony Pictures Classics)

“The Duke” is more than just a traditionally made movie about a man who goes on trial for stealing a valuable painting from London’s National Gallery. It’s also a witty and emotional drama about a family coping with grief. Based on a true story, “The Duke” is not as predictable as it might seem. The cast members greatly elevate the material, which might have become too lackluster or misguided with the wrong people cast in the roles.

Directed by Roger Michell (who passed away in 2021, at the age of 65), “The Duke” (which takes place in England, mostly in 1961) is really three stories in one, in telling what happened in the year of the life of 60-year-old Kempton Bunton (played Jim Broadbent) before, during and after he was put on trial for a famous art theft. The movie (written by Richard Bean and Clive Coleman) focuses mostly on the “before” part of the story, which is somewhat a detriment to the flow of the narrative, which needed to give more screen time to the trial.

Kempton, who lives in Newcastle, is a spunky nonconformist with a keen sense of questioning government authority and wanting to be a champion for underdogs and underprivileged people. He is a taxi driver by trade, but early on in the story, he gets fired from his taxi job. On the day that Kempton gets fired, his no-nonsense supervisor Freda (played by Val McLane, in a scene-stealing cameo) starts off by telling Kempton that she’s been getting customer complaints that he talks too much. More importantly to the boss, Kempton has also been falling short of handing over the company’s commission for his taxi cash earnings. He’s not exactly accused of stealing, but Kempton’s excuses aren’t good explanations for the missing commission money.

Kempton mumbles something about how he took pity on a cab rider who couldn’t afford to pay the fare. Freda tells Kempton, “I might have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I’ve got the testicles of Henry VIII … I am running a taxi firm, not a charity!” When Freda decides to fire Kempton without paying him the salary that he’s owed, he disagrees with her, and she barks at him: “Sue me then. But fuck off first!”

Kempton’s loyal but frustrated wife Dorothy Bunton (played by Helen Mirren) has gotten fed up with Kempton’s erratic employment. Dorothy is essentially the main breadwinner for the household. She works as a housekeeper for a wealthy middle-aged couple, whose husband is a prominent doctor in the area. Kempton and Dorothy have two sons, both in their 20s.

Younger son Jackie (played by Fionn Whitehead), who is kind and obedient, works as a boat repairer/builder at a shipyard, and he lives with Kempton and Dorothy. Jackie has a crush on a young woman who’s close to his age named Irene Boslover (played by Aimée Kelly), and they have a sweet romance that starts off a little hesitantly, because Jackie is shy when it comes to dating. Jackie greatly admires his eccentric father Kempton, but Dorothy worries that Jackie will be influenced too much by Kempton’s disruptor ways.

Older son Kenny (played by Jack Bandeira), who is rebellious and outspoken, no longer lives with his parents. Kenny is involved in shady and illegal activities that he won’t discuss with his family. And much to Dorothy’s disapproval, Kenny plans to start living with his lover Pamela (played by Charlotte Spencer), nicknamed Pammy, who is legally married but separated from her husband. When Kenny and Pamela visit his parents, it leads to arguments and hard feelings between Kenny and his mother Dorothy.

Kempton and Dorothy are parents to a third child—a daughter named Marian—who died in 1948, at the age 18. She was killed in a car accident while riding a bicycle that Kempton gave her as a gift. Kempton feels tremendous guilt over Marian’s death and visits her grave on a regular basis. Kempton also likes to talk about Marian and reminisce about happy memories that he has of her.

By contrast, Dorothy refuses to discuss Marian and her death. She treats Marian’s death as if it’s a closed door that she doesn’t ever want to open again. She won’t even visit Marian’s grave. Because Kempton and Dorothy have handled Marian’s death in extremely different ways, it’s caused a strain in their marriage.

Kempton has written a drama manuscript, inspired by Marian, called “The Girl on a Bicycle” that he hopes will be produced for television. Later in the movie, Dorothy is horrified when she finds out about this manuscript. “Grief is private!” Dorothy gruffly tells Kempton.

One day, Kempton watches the TV news and sees a report announcing that the National Gallery in London has purchased a Francisco Goya portrait painting of the Duke of Wellington, also known as former U.K. prime minister Arthur Wellesley. The painting is worth £140,000 in 1961 money. Adjusted for inflation, that would be about £267 million in early 2020s money. Kempton scoffs at the extravagant purchase, because he thinks the U.K. government could have put the money to better use.

Kempton is more than a little irritated about it. In a typical Kempton Bunton comment, he remarks to Dorothy about the National Gallery’s purchase of this painting: “You know what’s going on here. Toffs looking after their own. Spending our hard-earned money on a half-baked board rate, by some Spanish drunk, of a duke who was a bastard to his men and was against universal suffrage.” The irony of this comment is that Kempton has not paid his taxes in years.

Later, Kempton goes to London, in an attempt to get media and government attention for his quest to make TV in the United Kingdom free for old age pensioners (OAPs), who are usually on a fixed and limited income. While in London, he sees a newspaper article about the painting where the National Gallery has issued this invitation to visitors who want to see the Duke of Wellington painting: “Line up to meet the Duke!”

And not long after that, the painting is stolen and hidden in the Bunton household. It’s the first time that any art has been stolen from the National Gallery. (And to this day, it remains the only major theft that the National Gallery has experienced.) An anonymous ransom note written and mailed by Kempton announces that the painting is being held “hostage” until the U.K. government agrees to give £140,000 (the price paid for the painting) to worthy causes supporting the elderly and military veterans.

Police commissioner Sir Joseph Simpson (played by Charles Edwards) leads the investigation, but “The Duke” predictably has two bumbling police detectives—DI (Detective Inspector) Macpherson (played by Dorian Lough) and DI Brompton (played by Sam Swansbury)—who do a lot of the grunt work. Commissioner Simpson has a public relations role of giving updates to the media about the investigation. He seems to want all the publicity and glory for solving the case.

The police make the mistake of dismissing the correct suspect profile that a handwriting expert named Dr. Unsworth (played by Sian Clifford) deduced from studying the ransom note and figuring out what type of person wrote it. These detectives are convinced by their own theory that the painting was stolen by an unknown sophisticated gang from another nation, probably from Italy. The detectives also say amongst themselves that a woman who’s a handwriting expert could not possibly know more than these experienced cops.

Through a series of events that won’t be revealed in this review, the painting is discovered in the Bunton house. It’s enough to say that Kempton decides to turn himself in and admit that he “borrowed” the painting, to point out wasteful government spending and to demand that the U.K. government invest in better care for the elderly and military veterans. He pleads not guilty to the theft. None of this is spoiler information, because the movie’s trailer already reveals that Kempton goes on trial for stealing the painting.

Kempton’s trial doesn’t happen until the last third of the movie. Kempton’s defense attorney Jeremy Hutchinson (played by Matthew Goode) sometimes clashes with Kempton behind the scenes, but they both want to win the case. And so, Kempton and Jeremy find some common ground of agreement. The story has a real-life plot twist revealed in the movie’s last 15 minutes, which show how far Kempton is willing to go to stand by his beliefs, even if it’s at great personal risk to himself.

With a working-class man in his 60s as the protagonist, “The Duke” is the type of British drama movie that doesn’t get made very much anymore. Dorothy is a formidable and strong-willed person in this story (and Mirren performs well in the role, as expected), but she’s really a supporting character who reacts to whatever chaos Kempton has created. Broadbent brings roguish charm to this role, and his performance (which is both amusing and heartbreaking) is the main reason to see this film.

“The Duke” is not perfect by any means. The movie takes a little too long to get to the trial, which is somewhat crammed in toward the end of the film. There are several scenes that over-explain how Kempton has trouble keeping a job because of his tendency to question authority. And there’s a repeated cycle of Dorothy getting upset by Kempton’s mischief, and Kempton promising that he won’t cause any more problems and won’t keep secrets from her. And then, he inevitably breaks his promise.

As an example of Kempton’s unstable employment, there’s a section of the movie showing Kempton in a job as an assembly line worker at a bread factory. He befriends a Pakistani co-worker named Javid Akram (played by Ashley Kumar), who is the only employee in that department who isn’t white. Kempton eventually gets fired for standing up to his racist boss Mr. Walker (played by Craig Conway), who bullies Javid by calling him a racial slur and singling him out for unfair treatment.

“The Duke” also tends to be a little too repetitive with Kempton’s bootlegging of the ITV network (which, unlike the BBC, requires payment to receive) on the TV set in his household’s living room. He tries to dodge the authorities he encounters who attempt to fine him for non-payment, but he eventually spends 13 jays in jail when he gets into a scuffle over it. During his ongoing dispute over this issue, Kempton stages protests on the street with “Free TV for OAP” signs, with Jackie recruited as Kempton’s protest companion. Most people who pass Kempton and Jackie on the street just don’t care—and neither will viewers after a while, since the stolen painting is the more interesting part of the movie.

When Kempton’s legal entanglements make the news, Dorothy is embarrassed, makes profuse apologies to her employer Dolly Gowling (played by Anna Maxwell Martin), and promises that she’s not as “unstable” has her husband. Mrs. Gowling, who is married to a difficult and domineering man, has empathy for Kempton. Because she is a supporter of Kempton’s anti-establishment ways, Mrs. Gowling attends his trial as an eager spectator.

Any supporting characters outside of Dorothy and Jackie tend to be drawn in broad strokes that are a little stereotypical. They include the “law and order” characters, such as the aforementioned main detectives; Judge Aarvold (played by James Wilby); prosecutor Edward Cussen (played by John Heffernan); and junior counsel Eric Crowther (played by Joshua McGuire), who works with Jeremy on Kempton’s defense team. Despite some of these narrative flaws, “The Duke” has enough amusing banter, heartfelt moments and well-played scenes to hold the interest of people who are open to watching movies set in 1960s England and that have a retro filmmaking style that matches this era.

Sony Pictures Classics released “The Duke” in select U.S. cinemas on April 22, 2022. The movie was released in Canada and Australia in 2021, and in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Japan on February 25, 2022.