Fresh and Exciting

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

While the whole plot could seem rather weak, this movie is a perfect example of a modern storytelling done with mastery. The pace of the movie is voluntarily slow, the actors are excellent, the breaking of the fourth wall is used with wit by a character who at first seems to be there only to tell us the story, and there are some surprising events that are typical of an action movie.

I always thought that Roald Dahl's stories were creepy, but this story is the most horrific of all: suggesting that animals are things that can be exchanged without consequences is just disgusting. This is not charming, this is exactly what is wrong with the human race and why animals have to suffer from them. A "hero" who does this, does not deserve to succeed and therefore this story does not work for me at all.

Dustin Hoffman plays the silver haired shy American ex-pat Mr Hoppy who lives in an apartment building tending to his garden on his balcony.Judi Dench is the flame haired Mrs Silver, the new neighbour who has moved into the apartment building. She may not be the brightest bulb in the chandelier and she has a pet tortoise who is growing just too slowly for her liking.Mr Hoppy is lovestruck at first sight but he needs to pluck up the courage just to exchange a few words with the more outgoing Mrs Silver.Mr Hoppy hatches an elaborate plan to fool Mrs Silver that her tortoise is growing fast which does not seem too romantic at first.Richard Curtis and Paul Mayhew-Archer adapted the book from Roald Dahl which is more whimsical and romantic than being a dark fairy tale for children which Dahl is better known for.The film has narration from James Corden who frames the story of the two elderly romantics bouncing sparks off each other. The minor characters are painted broadly.Hoffman gives a very subtle performance as Mr Hoppy, far from those intense characters he played when he was younger, full of various ticks, mannerisms and vocal abilities. He is simply just more relaxed. A softer version of the Method.It is left to Dench to be more vivid, footloose and flirtatious with various costumes that she wears as she bumps into Mr Hoppy in the lift. Mrs Silver has passions of her own that she wants to unleash.However the film does feel a little stage bound, the apartment setting looks too studio bound. The makers try to overcome this with Corden walking down the street or being on the bus but it just felt a little insular although enjoyable enough.

There is no doubt that Roald Dahl is a true genius, nevertheless there have been cases where movies have not lived up to their original works. There is no doubt that Judi Drench and Dustin Hoffman are huge names and absolutely amazing (to say the least) actors, however there have been plenty of movies with superb actors and great names which turned out less so. This is NOT one of those. The BBC did a great job to put a marvellous story into this magnificent movie, for the young and the old alike.Dustin Hoffman does such a sublime job playing Mr. Hoppy that I find it hard to imagine him as anybody else. Quiet, shy, kind Mr. Hoppy made his way into my heart from his first minute (more like seconds actually) on the screen. Judi Drench appears as the love interest of Mr. Hoppy, Mrs. Silver, whom despite not being the brightest bulb in the box was a lovely character. All in all both have given wonderful performances.The writers were, in my opinion, the ones who managed to bring real magic to the movie. Looking for more detail, they turned out to be Richard Curtis, Paul Mayhew-Archer, 'old' names to the admirers of comedy from the BBC. Their tasteful humour is no news to me and they managed to put their light, yet deep, touch to this script. They have managed to insert some of the loveliest jokes, and produced a masterpiece that would bring tears to people's eyes for ages. There is not enough praise I could ever possibly bring to this movie and for it to be enough. I could go on for ages, praise every joke and every scene.