ALLAN HUNTER at the Movies

MICHAEL CAINE has been a star for over forty years. He has two Oscars and countless triumphs to his credit. It would be only too easy for him to rest on his laurels and coast through a few lucrative cameo roles.

Caine clearly still has a passion for acting and in director John Crowley he has found someone willing to really challenge him. Their collaboration on Is Anybody There? has resulted in a poignant drama that features one of Caine’s best performances in recent years.

Set in the 1980s, the film charts the unexpected bond between a morbid young boy and a grumpy old man. Edward (Bill Milner) is a lonely eleven year-old whose parents (Anne-Marie Duff and David Morrissey) run a slightly shabby old folks home. Edward is obsessed with the possibility that there might be life after death.

Clarence (Caine) is an elderly magician and widower who becomes a reluctant new resident in the home. Soon, this unlikely duo have found common ground that allows them to bridge the generation gap. Clarence helps Edward come to terms with mortality whilst Edward helps Carence to make peace with his past.

Handled with a deft touch, the film has enough tartness to counteract the inevitable sentimentality as it tugs at the heartstrings. It also has a fantastic cast with British veterans like Leslie Phillips and Sylvia Syms in supporting roles and a luminous Anne-Marie Duff giving a memorable performance as the mother.

The warm, well-acted relationship between Caine and Bill (Son of Rambow) Milner provides the touching core of this endearing, unpretentious heatwarmer.

Nationwide release

Director: John Crowley
Cast: Michael Caine, David Morrissey, Anne-Marie Duff, Bill Milner, Leslie Phillips, Sylvia Syms, Peter Vaughan.
Screenwriters: Peter Harness
Certificate: 12A
Running time: 95 mins
Country: UK
Year: 2008

© Allan Hunter, 2009