El duque

I admit, I am a huge fan of Jim Broadbent. I've always enjoyed everything I've seen him. Almost always, he portrays someone slightly eccentric, which I suppose I relate to.

The Duke, is once again, a gentle British comedy, of which he excels in. Dame Helen Mirren as his long suffering partner gives a well deserved performance but to me, Jim Broadbent steals the show.

If your lucky enough to have lived in the 1960s, or even interested in the period, you will love this slow, gentle comedy, as I did.

I only hope that Jim Broadbent is awarded the critical acclaim for which he is long overdue in receiving. He is an absolute icon of British Cinema and and a National Treasure.

This is an absolute Gem!!!

A good story which is told well and has some great acting performances. It wasn't as funny as I was expecting with a fair bit of focus on a tragedy and everyday life, but it was still pretty humorous and enjoyable throughout. The setting and style felt authentic and the seamless use of stock footage complemented this.

A tonic for these sombre times, this sweet natured light and easy comedy tells the tale of how in 1961 an eccentric man from Newcastle stole a valuable Goya portrait from London's national gallery. It's a wonderfully old fashioned film which echoes well the flavour humour and style of the Ealing comedies, mixing split screen archive film with superbly grimy re-creations of old Newcastle and London, and just a little bit if social comment too. Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren revel in it all, as do rest of the cast, and the whole things cruises along and raises a many a smile - a tonic indeed. It's also a true story. Highly recommended.

I did not realise this was based on a true story till the end but that just made the film even more special. Its just a simple story about a simple man that is just so quintessentially British.

The acting is spot on and there are a few great twists and turns to enjoy.

Well worth the watch for anyone to enjoy.

I must admit I went into this film not expecting much but I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun it was. I'm sure many non-UK viewers will probably only recognize Helen Mirren's name out of the cast but to me Jim Broadbent, a superb actor who mysteriously never really became an international star, (despite having won an Oscar) totally steals it with a charming excellent central performance and a twinkle in his eye.

The whole cast to be fair are excellent all round and the script has lots of witty humour, some of which is particularly British and may be lost on foreign audiences (such as the joke he tells in court which plays on the Newcastle/Sunderland rivalry). Both Broadbent and Mirren pull off very credible North East accents and the films relatively low budget gives the film an 'intimate' feel that, as another reviewer pointed out, makes this film feel a little like an Ealing black comedy.

The film does have some occasional fruity language and a sex scene so it may not be entirely suitable for children or prudish viewers but if that doesn't bother you and you like the kind of big hearted, low key British crime capers with a twist in the tale from yesteryear such as 'The Lavender Hill Mob' or 'Kind Hearts and Coronets' then you may well enjoy this tale.