The Thursday Murder Club film review: This adaptation offers cosy comfort and is peppered with sly humour

THE THURSDAY MURDER CLUB

(12A) 118mins

★★★★☆

3

RICHARD OSMAN’s hit crime novel The Thursday Murder Club gets a film adaptation here that is fun and disarmingly old-fashioned.

Directed by Chris Columbus (Mrs. Doubtfire, The Harry Potter franchise) and with an inspired screenplay by comic-turned-screenwriter Katy Brand, this Netflix-produced movie features stellar turns from some legendary talent of the British film industry.

Columbus, known for his family-friendly touch, leans into warmth and character rather than grit to deliver this cosy murder mystery with Hollywood sheen.

The story follows residents of a retirement community in Kent who meet weekly to discuss unsolved crimes, only to find themselves investigating a real murder.

Playful charm

Helen Mirren shines as feisty retired spy Elizabeth, Pierce Brosnan as ex-union man Ron, and Ben Kingsley as ex-psychiatrist Ibrahim, while Celia Imrie plays new resident Joyce, a retired nurse now at a loose end.

The cast’s chemistry is a joy, bringing playful charm.

When property developer Ian Ventham (David Tennant, hilariously villainous) becomes entangled in shady dealings and one of his associates dies, the elderly misfits set to solving the mystery.

Their meddling irritates the police but they find help from PC Donna De Freitas (Naomi Ackie) and her reluctant boss DCI Chris Hudson (Daniel Mays).

Tennant revels in playing a greedy, larger-than-life baddie, while the interplay of the eccentric sleuths and exasperated authorities provides much comedy.

Elsewhere, Jonathan Pryce plays Elizabeth’s husband Stephen, a bestselling author who now has dementia.

Richard E. Grant appears as a mysterious flower shop owner while Tom Ellis portrays Ron’s meathead son Jason, a former boxer.

The tone is whimsical, full of ITV Sunday night charm — and while sleepy in its rhythm, the film is peppered with sly humour.

The cast’s charisma carries the quieter moments, though some may find their dynamic more gripping than the murder.

This film aims at an older audience — and has depth. Themes of mortality, legacy and the search for purpose in later life are all there.

While not as sharp as some whodunits, it offers cosy comfort with intrigue.

Fans of Osman’s books will enjoy it and newcomers may be surprised by the fun.

EDDINGTON

(15) 148mins

★★☆☆☆

3

DOES anyone really wish to relive all that dull talk about face masks from the days of Covid-19? Writer-director Ari Aster clearly thinks so.

Set in a fictional desert town in New Mexico called Eddington, this film starts in May 2020, as we meet sheriff Joe Cross (Joaquin Phoenix).

He lives with bed-ridden wife Louise (Emma Stone) who stitches freaky dolls and discusses conspiracy theories with her mum (Deirdre O’Connell).

Joe has asthma and hates face masks but town mayor Ted (Pedro Pascal) insists on them. So Joe campaigns to become mayor.

The film drags – the first hour is mostly Joe dithering over his campaign. It picks up a bit as white teens join in Black Lives Matter protests.

Louise then becomes a follower of cult leader Vernon Jefferson Peak (Austin Butler).

But it all fails to weave together and there is NO likeable character – Ted’s son Eric (Matt Gomez Hidaka) and his social justice-warrior girlfriend (Amelie Hoeferle) are too screechy to watch.

The film lacks tension, and its preaching about racism, conspiracy and guns is one big nag. Aster’s CV includes cult horror films Hereditary and Midsommar – but this is as tedious as Covid tests.

THE LIFE OF CHUCK

(15) 111mins

★★★☆☆

3

ADAPTED by Mike Flanagan from a lesser-known 2020 Stephen King novella, this is an ambitious tale of morality told in reverse.

In a small town somewhere in America, it is the end of the world.

Teacher Marty Anderson (Chiwetel Ejiofor) and his ex-wife Felicia (Karen Gillan) face a collapsing coastline, giant sinkholes and the end of the internet.

Amid the chaos, billboards appear around town thanking Chuck Krantz (Tom Hiddleston), an unremarkable man who is gradually revealed to be dying of a degenerative disease.

In later scenes, Chuck’s supposedly “life-affirming” street-dance with Annalise Basso feels more manipulative than genuinely moving.

The film’s final chapter takes us back to Chuck’s childhood, where he is played by Benjamin Pajak. It highlights his closeness to his gran and a haunting supernatural touch.

Supporting turns from Carl Lumbly, Jacob Tremblay, and Mark Hamill add depth but little substance. Flanagan and his cast give it everything but the film is far less clever than it imagines.

Its big statements about life and death land with an earnest thud, too on the nose to truly resonate.