The Duke: Film Review
The late, great Roger Michell has made a few films I enjoy – Notting Hill, Morning Glory, and My Cousin Rachel – and his final movie, The Duke, is another one to add to that list.
The Duke tells the story of Kempton Bunton (Jim Broadbent), an eccentric fellow who fails to hold down a job for long as he is a chatterbox whose outspoken nature often gets him into trouble. In the 1960s, he was sent to prison for stealing Francisco Goya’s painting of the Duke of Wellington from London’s National Gallery, hiding it in his home, and then putting it back.
This film is light-hearted, entertaining and very funny. Its whimsical nature reflects how absurd the remarkable true story is. It’s mind-blowing and a little ridiculous that this actually happened! The film zips along at a breezy pace and is over before you know it and should leave you with a smile on your face.
The biggest reason for that is Broadbent, who is on terrific form as the endearing Kempton. He’s quite the character – a vocal campaigner who is always on his soapbox about his latest cause, such as free TV licences for OAPs. You can’t resist laughing at or with him as he’s so outspoken, has no filter, and has a hilarious turn of phrase at times.
Helen Mirren co-stars as Kempton’s long-suffering wife Dorothy, who has buried her grief in cleaning. She’s constantly cleaning up after his mess (both literally and figuratively) and wants him to stop his nonsense and get a steady job.
Elsewhere in the supporting cast, I enjoyed Fionn Whitehead as their son Jackie – whose involvement in the plot adds some extra fun to the story – and Matthew Goode as Bunton’s defence lawyer Jeremy Hutchinson, who seems pretty taken by his client’s rebellious, anti-establishment attitude.
The Duke is a delightful film – make sure you check it out!
In cinemas from Friday 25th February