The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012)

User Review

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  Barneyonmovies

  9 / 10

  WHAT I LIKED: 'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,' follows a bunch of greying Brits on a collective adventure to retire in Delhi which sees exciting new experiences and relationships blossom. At the start of the film they're all written off to a life of sad mediocrity - we see one couple looking at a drab old person's bungalow and another woman struggling with the death of her husband - but they're then quickly whisked off to a brave new world of opportunity. Some fight the change whilst others embrace it, and the result is a highly uplifting and touching story of finding joy and life again in a fascinating place.
  
  That's helped to life on the one hand by the vivid Indian environment around the people which is captured brilliantly by director John Madden and his team (as well as Thomas Newman's perfect score), and on the other by a set of first-rate performances from some of Britain's finest actors. There's Judi Dench's strong-willed but lonely and scared widow who becomes charmed by her surroundings and sparking friendship with Tom Wilkinson and Bill Nighy's equally lovely and sad characters. The latter's wife Penelope Wilton struggles to find the same happiness and clings to her fears and isolation, whilst a hilariously stiff-upper-lip Maggie Smith similarly finds things difficult. Ultimately though - with a little nudge from the ever-persistent and amusing hotel manager Dev Patel - they mostly find solace in their shared situation and the beauty of their surroundings. That's a lovely arc for characters who are all tinged with tragedy, and it's a very moving and heart-warming watch as a result.
  
  WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: Ol Parker's script is hardly ground-breaking or cliché-free, but when it's executed as well as this, it's hard to really complain.
  
  VERDICT: A heart-warming tale of finding joy and purpose later in life, 'The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel,' is brought to life perfectly by its brilliant cast and direction.

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