For the first twenty minutes or so, it feels like it's pandering slightly to the naive person's view of senior life and attitudes. Once the film establishes itself and reaches the location where the story will play out, however, we get some lovely poignant backstories for the characters. The performances of Judi Dench and Tom Wilkinson in particular are magnificent.
The same feeling of things being a little too neat applies to the climax, also - the Dev Patel character's experience of the wisdom of advancing years seems not only inconsistent, but also provides a conveniently pat resolution. Overall though, it's a good humoured film that should leave you smiling.
The same feeling of things being a little too neat applies to the climax, also - the Dev Patel character's experience of the wisdom of advancing years seems not only inconsistent, but also provides a conveniently pat resolution. Overall though, it's a good humoured film that should leave you smiling.