ALLELUJAH
Rated M, 99 minutes
★★★½
The iron fist in the velvet glove does not really sum up Alan Bennett’s style. While he’s one of Britain’s most admired satirists with a sharp ear for the vernacular and a keen eye for the oddest aspects of being English, his affection for his characters is never in doubt.
He can make you laugh and cry in the space of two sentences, but this film of his play Allelujah shows him at his most political and polemical.
We’re guided into the story by the caring Dr Valentine, played by Bally Gill.Credit:
The action takes place in the geriatric ward of a Yorkshire hospital, which is doleful news but it’s lightened by the presence of some of Britain’s most popular actors. Judi Dench and Derek Jacobi are among the patients and Jennifer Saunders plays the matron, which automatically suggests some fun to be had.
And, for a while, there is. Even at her most commanding, Saunders looks as if she’s battling to keep a straight face. But you’re not far in before you realise the feelgood element has not been assigned much of a role.
Directed by Richard Eyre, the film was scripted by Heidi Thomas, creator of Call the Midwife, and has a more naturalistic style than the play. It centres on a week in the life of The Bethlehem, a small hospital threatened with closure. A television crew is arriving to interview staff and patients and a tiny group of protesters is gathering.
We’re guided into the story by Dr Valentine (Bally Gill), a young Indian doctor whose interest in geriatric medicine reflects a genuine reverence for the elderly. He and Saunders’ Sister Gilpin are among The Beth’s most ardent supporters and at the other end of the spectrum is Colin Colman (Russell Tovey), an advisor to the health minister. He’s been pushing for the hospital’s shutdown, which puts him in an awkward position now his father has been admitted as a patient.
The best thing about the screenplay is its lack of condescension. The hard truths that go with ageing are not glossed over and the shortcomings in Britain’s health service get a pasting, while the elderly are not treated as feeble children or as lovable clowns.
All right, there are a couple of examples of the latter, but most retain vigorous traces of their younger and healthier selves and Jacobi shines as a former teacher with a bracingly sardonic attitude to his future prospects.
And while the polemics can be a little too insistent, producing an abrupt and unexpected climax, the ending – which has Dr Valentine deliver a fervent tribute to the health system and its frontline troops – is both bold and unexpectedly moving.
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