Fresh from Cinema.. ..The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

This time it is really almost fresh from cinema - for I watched this one on Monday.. Another film I anticpated to be released - and which made me fall for it in almost no time:

THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL (2011)

In a nut-shell:

Evelyn Greenslade (Judi Dench) became recently a widow and feels lonely and kind of useless.

Graham Dashwood (Tom Wilkinson) decides that it's time to quit his job and return to the place of his youth.

Jean (Penelope Wilton) and Douglas Ainslee (Bill Nighy) put their savings in their daughter's firm - and lost it - not to mention that their marriage also could need some help.

Muriel Donnelly (Maggie Smith) needs a hip replacement - preferable not too expensive.

Norman Cousins (Ronald Pickup) looks for an erotic adventure -  and the speed dates he attends seem not to bring the wanted success.

Madge Hardcastle (Celia Imrie) feels too young to be "just a grandmother" - and for sure young enough to find a new love.

They all leave their lives in Great Britain and meet on the journey to India...

~ Maggie Smith, Ronald Pickup, Bill Nighy, Penelope Wilton, Celia Imrie, Judi Dench and Tom Wilkinson ~

 ...where they all head to the Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (for the elderly and beautiful) - a residential home which is managed by zealous and enthusiastic Sonny Kapoor (Dev Patel) who has some troubles with his mother (Lillete Dubey) - who isn't happy at all that he wants to decide for himself which girl he is going to marry: Sunaina (Tena Desae).

The hotel isn't exactly what it's guests expected from the brochure - it's more or less a ruin. (As optimistic Sonny explains: the brochure shows merely the future looks..)

But for once the guests decide to stay - and for all of them life will change.. 

So if you're a fan of...

... a great cast

... characters who are not in their early teens anymore

... films set in India

... optimists

please watch this film!

~ Evelyn (Judi Dench) and Madge (Celia Imrie) arriving ~

In the last issue of this series I told you that one certain actress could not make me want to watch a film just because of her appearence in it - but this film's cast I would follow pretty much into each and every film:

Judi Dench, Bill Nighy, Celia Imrie, Maggie Smith and Tom Wilksinson are some favourites of mine - they are just brilliant. Most of you will by now know that I am highly anglophile - so: no surprise in that at all, is it?

~ A grumpy Maggie Smith - how could one not love that lady? ~

I don't want to tell you too much - but this film contains pretty much everything you can ask for - without slipping into clichées too much. Yes - still there are a long lost love, a death and of course some new loves..

The characters are pretty well done - each of them has her/his own story. Just for one example: the character Muriel played by Maggie Smith is in the beginning quite racist. She changes her mind in the end quite a bit - but this is not done in one of those schmaltzy scenes we all know so well. It's done pretty quietly - and that's one point I really love about this film. It does not sell us this *snap!-now-she-won't-discriminate-anyone-ever-in-her-life-again*-kitsch. The characters in this film develop quite slow - just how they would in real life (well.. okay.. a bit faster.. they only have 2 hours time here..) 

~ Penelope Wilton in a difficult role - because it is a quite unhappy and negative character  ~ 

The film contains a lot of humour, some calm scenes and also has some drama, too. 

Just by the way: Penelope Wilton reads a book in this film called TULIP FEVER - it's by Deborah Moggach - who also wrote the novel THESE FOOLISH THINGS on which THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTEL is based on..

~ Dev Patel as Sonny - manager of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
- and that's quite a task.. - esp. when your guest insist on rooms with doors.. ~

This film has some really beautiful filmed scenes - in the beginning it appears to be done with a hand camera: everything is shaky and darkish - but as they arrive in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel - the films starts to show a beauty and serenity I have troubles to discribe.. Simply beautifully composed - and one of the places they filmed was also used in one of my favourite recent films: THE FALL (2006)..

~ Bill Nighy.  I adore that man. - 'nough said..~

It's an overall wonderful film and I think it will become a Summer favourite of mine. If you can spare 124 minutes for a simply great film with an outstanding cast: Please give this film a try! Honest: It does not feel like 2 hours of film at all!

Oh - and some bloggers will be happy to hear this: Evelyn (Judi Dench) is writing a blog in this film.. (or let me quote one of my classic favourites: "we accept her - one of us - we accept her - one of us - gooble gobble - gooble gobble - we accept her - we accept her..")

Have a look:

It has for sure one of the best and most optimistic lines ever to be delivered in a film:

"Everything will be all right in the end - so: if it's not all right: then it's not yet the end."

Thank you very much for listening

Yours 

Irene