Allelujah

I thought I was all set for a heart warming feel good film. Very depressing. Tackles the issues of geriatric care and there's no happy ending we all are going to die. Jennifer Saunders is really different to how we usually see her. No make up dowdy and with a northern accent. It didn't surprise me she could transform successfully into a no nonsense matron of a Yorkshire hospital given all of the characters she played in French and Saunders. Judi Dench and Derek Jacobi of course steal the show. The words spoken as a narrative over the film by Dr Valentine had me sobbing into a tissue throughout .

There are some plot twists you can see coming a mile off. There are many films where you know a twist is coming, even if you don't know what it'll be. Allelujah is a film where you don't realise there's going to be a twist t all, never mind one so vicious.

Set in a small, crumbling hospital earmarked for closure, and which mostly deals with geriatric patients, Allelujah starts out as a classic Little Guy vs Government Machine story. There's much that is poignant, and much that is comic and there are fine performances throughout, particularly from Jennifer Saunders, David Bradley and Derek Jacobi.

Then, just when the bureaucrat seems set for a big change of heart and the audience senses the feel-good ending, the rug's pulled out from under them completely. It's both devastating and unforgettable.

Dr Valentine's final piece to camera is magnificent, as he says the things that *need* to be said.

Maybe TIFF wasn't the best place to launch this very British film based on a play ?

The NHS ( National Health Service) is shown in a microcosm of political and cynical struggles in a small community hospital unit for old people needing special care.

It's very Alan Bennett, although with short but still cutting monologues , some are funnier than others but all serve a purpose.

The geriatric ward is the logical place to highlight the old and decrepit hospital system, fighting for survival at death's door, but there are more metaphors here, the NHS is killing people due to a lack of resources, most notably a shortage of beds, is there even a shortage of carers?.

Jennifer Saunders is great as the head nurse trying her best to keep a 'clean' ward, but working to targets for turnover of patients and moving them through the system comes at a heavy price, closure is imminent and her efficiency is not enough.

The doctor is stereotypical, an Asian immigrant with a nostalgic true vocational outlook to care for his patients with a hands on approach.

The patients are a who's who of British stalwart actors and they are very convincing as geriatrics, each representing the problems within the health care system. One patient's son happens to be a management consultant for the government's health minister and getting a personal experience of the hospital suggests the need for 'government' to understand the real world of this care in the community, rather than just facts and figures on spreadsheets, it's a political statement about how things are failing people by going for large scale centres of excellence?.

As a person with a lot of personal experience of the NHS and getting old too, I can relate to the representation if not actually recognise the geriatric care unit.

The film takes a risky turn or two near the end especially with a plea for support and understanding of the caring people who work in the NHS providing a public service, which is now underappreciated again post pandemic, although ironically with the recent strike action this has probably not helped their case.

This is bound to be a divisive film and some may be disappointed by it's change in tone from comedy to politics, especially if they don't understand the British system or the metaphors about it.

When a small geriatric hospital in Northern England is threatened with closure, the staff and patients rally together to try and save it. There might be a glimmer of hope with this task as the government consultant tasked with the final evaluation - "Colin" (Russell Tovey) has his estranged father " Joe" (David Bradley) in that self same facility. The place is run under the benignly imperious hand of "Sister Gilpin" (Jennifer Saunders) with Bally Gill's "Dr. Valentine" tending to their clinical needs. As you'd expect with Alan Bennett, this comes at you from the left of the political spectrum, and highlights what he sees as the short-termism of fiscally based decision making. To that end, Sir Richard Eyre has assembled a strong cast of formidable character actors to portray the patients. Most notable amongst them, for me, was Julia McKenzie and Bradley is also on great form as the curmudgeonly old gent coming to terms with his predicament and his successful, gay, son. There is plenty of dry humour, observational sarcasm to the fore and Saunders and Gill have quite a nice chemistry between them as they both strive to care for their elderly charges. I can't say that I loved the ending. It is thought provoking, but somehow seemed just a little over-dramatic and unnecessary. That said, though, the ensemble cast reminded me very much "Quartet" (2012) with strong leading characters and familiar faces at every turn helping to highlight the serious (and lighter) issues of the ageing process for both the older folks and for those charged with keeping them well. Not sure it really needs a cinema to enjoy, but it's still well worth ninety minutes.

As is often the case - I simply dont understand the low-scores by Imdb contributors. A score starting with a 5 on here is completely unjustified.

This is - perhaps at first sight - a boring film full of old doddery figures. There are no car chases - no screeching of wheels - no guns in fact or any raised voices threatening anyone with anything. Perhaps whats whats "wrong" here.

Instead there are many threads of peoples varied lives all ending up (as most readers of this will - if they are lucky) in their twilight years under the care of The NHS - their for our first breath and our last.

There is a completely unexpected plot twist near the ending - makes one think "Is this based on a true story" and then you remember the genius of the Writer Alan Bennetts fiction over decades here in the UK.

Its brilliant. Have some curiosity and give it a go.