Is Anybody There?

Most great actors when they feel they have amassed a distinguished body of work tend to rest on their laurels and just churn out pretty bog standard stuff in their later years. Al Pacino and Robert DeNiro seem to be doing it of late with "Hide & Seek" and "88 Minutes" not to mention their joint effort "Righteous Kill" while Laurence Olivier long ago pioneered the process with such beauties as "The Jazz Singer" and "The Betsy". Michael Caine however seems to have gone the opposite route. While his long career is dotted with some minor classics it is also flooded with some major turds. In fact between "Sleuth" (1972) and – "Sleuth" (2007) there has been "The Man Who Would Be King" –"Hannah And Her Sisters" - "Mona Lisa" but there has also been "The Hand" – "The Swarm" – "Jaws: The Revenge" - "Blame It On Rio" (a lot of)etc. Recently though Michael Caine clearly feels he has his money made and can afford to be to be a lot more selective in his choice of roles. He has had a consistent run of well received performances in well-received films and has become an integral part of the revitalised Batman franchise. His latest choice is possibly one of his best performances. In "Is Anybody there" he plays "The Amazing Clarence" a former magician who is forced by increasing dementia to move into a nursing home, very much against his will. The nursing home is also home to 10 year old Edward whose parents own and run the place. He is just as unhappy to be there as Clarence is and inevitably a prickly friendship develops between the (very) cantankerous old man and the (very) cheeky young boy. Edward is fascinated with death and ghosts, hardly surprising given his environment and Clarence teaches him magic tricks to try and pull him out of this morbidity and encourages him to make friends with kids his own age. Indeed Edward does start to impress his class-mates with his magic tricks (particularly the ones involving fire) and he decides to have a birthday party at the home – with Clarence as the entertainment. But Clarence's Alzheimers is getting worse and he is becoming more and more forgetful, when it matters most. This is a beautifully acted film by both Caine and Bill Milner as Edward. Anne-Marie Duff and David Morrissey perform solidly as the parents while the residents of the home are played by a number of established faces including Leslie Phillips as a man with a passion for telling very dirty jokes – particularly to members of the clergy. The film is full of dark humour but is never patronising and frequently very moving. While Clarence's decline is a bit rapid - more of a plummet into full senility than a descent - it is still very well handled and ultimately leads to a very touching finale.

Not knowing what to expect of this film we were pleasantly surprised, relieved in fact. One critic had rated it as 'morbid' – just what we needed on a bank holiday afternoon – when in fact it was quite uplifting.

There was no waiting around, Cowley took the audience directly to the sitting room of the elderly peoples home. You didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the antics of some of the elderly residents – an ex-dancer, a drunkard, war veteran – who, as interesting as they looked, were never discussed in much detail. They were 'props', clichés or as Edward would put it, 'pains in the backside'.

Indeed, we are made to see the residents as Edward did. Their antics are in fact, annoyances, enough to drive a wedge between him and his parents. Edward, who celebrates his 11th birthday in the film, is focused solely on finding out what happens after death. He played the part beautifully with such naivety and sincerity.

The arrival of Clarence to the home would change Edward more than he would think and vice versa. It was nice to see the relationship grow between the two. For the very first time, Edward would begin to look upon one of the residents as a grandfather figure, someone who would teach him new tricks and to live for the living, not for the dead. Not only did Clarence become a grandfather to Edward but also a friend. There are some great snapshots throughout of the two of them.

Overall, it was a nice film that taught us to live for the moment and that regrets can eat you up inside. It also reveals truths about residential homes: 'you live all your life on your own and then someone thinks it's a good idea to put you with complete strangers'. We must remember that despite having their age in common, elderly people are all unique and should be treated so. Despite being set in the 1980's, the colours and styles all depicting this era wonderfully, these 'lessons in life' are as true today as they were back then.

I lived in England in the 60's when many of these actors were in their prime. Here they are 50 years later and still working. They're not a bit afraid to act or look their age. What a treat for us and what a treat for young Bill Milner to act with these greats of British film and theatre. Quite a change from "Intermission" for the director John Crowley, but also suitably paced for an older generation. Nice enjoyable film about an old codger and a young boy. Anne Marie Duff had a tiny part (the last scene) in "Notes on a Scandal" and a larger one in a recent Irish film called "Garage." Check it out for understated acting and writing. David Morrissey played one of the leads in the TV series "State of Play" which is now a film with Russell Crowe and Helen Mirren.

Brilliant. I loved every minute of it.

The movie had the perfect mix of comedy and drama. It's a joy to watch Bill Milner (of Son of Rambow fame) go toe to toe with Michael Caine.

It was interesting to hear from the director how the movie originally had political undertones. As I recall from the Q&A at the TIFF screenings, the director said that the movie was set in the late 80s partly because of Margaret Thatcher - who declared that "There's no such thing as society... only individuals and families."

I'm glad they decided to skip the politics altogether though. It would have taken away from such a simple story that in itself is just beautiful one to watch.

In his fifty,or so years since he had an uncredited role in a now long forgotten British film,Michael Caine has made a name for himself in British cinema. 'Is There Anybody There' will certainly cement his reputation that much further. Granted,he has acted in his share of stinkers, but the good/superb films out weighs them. For this outing, Caine is Clarence,a retired Magician who has just moved into a nursing home,on England's seacoast sometime in the later half of the 1980's. A 10 year old boy,who is obsessed with death & ghosts has a bad introduction with Clarence,who comes off as the typical grouchy old man who just wants to be left alone. Over a period of time,the boy learns some valuable life lessons about age. Do the two of them bond a friendship? What I admired about this film that it doesn't paint the elderly as something to be pitied or feared. The film is rounded out by a cast of mostly unknown British actors (at least by me,anyway,but it didn't diminish the film one bit). A screenplay that equally mixes humour,drama & pathos makes for a sparkling cocktail of a film that will have the viewer exiting the cinema feeling good. Rated PG-13 by the MPAA,this film contains some salty language,adult situations & a horrific (but darkly humorous)image of a magic trick gone horribly wrong.