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According to P

Tag: Bill Nighy

QuickView: Living (2022)

“I don’t have time to get angry.”

Williams

In its moving simplicity, Ikiru is probably my favourite of Akira Kurosawa’s films. Adapting the screenplay 70 years later, Kazuo Ishigura has shifted the setting to London but opted to stay in the same 1950s post-war era. In fact the opening credits could deceive one into thinking that Living was made in the 50s, though it subsequently retains only the antiquated aspect ratio. The period makes sense for Nighy’s particular breed of gentleman civil servant, dutifully slowing down progress (“We can keep it here. It can do no harm.”) and distanced from those with whom he lives by a familial inability to communicate. Ikiru’s themes are all on display: the failure of bureacracy, the search for meaning in life, and the revitalising freedom of being faced with one’s mortality. After receiving his diagnosis, Williams’ ruminations are shown as memories bleeding through from black and white into colour, and he finds the liberation of inebriation brings only exhaustion. Aimee Lou Wood translates the charm she displayed on Sex Education to the big screen as Mr Williams’ youthful colleague who serves as the catalyst for his redemptive work. Her guileless affection serves as a counterpoint to Nighy’s measured performance, a chilly exterior swiftly giving way to a melancholic warmth, and the film’s success is tied to these performances. Living is such a slavishly faithful adaptation that it has little insight to add to its source material and yet — since so many people will balk at watching at a 70-year-old Japanese film — I cannot fault the creation of this British facsimile that is undoubtedly more palatable to a modern Western audience and nearly as beautiful in the same quiet simplicity.

8/10

QuickView: Salting the Battlefield (2014)

“It’s one thing to go around saying what you want. The test comes when you are actually given the chance to get it. When they wanted to get rid of Margaret Thatcher, John Major got toothache so he didn’t have to answer his phone. A week later he was prime minister.”

Jill Tankard

If Turks & Caicos was Worricker treading (Caribbean) water, Salting the Battlefield moves at full pace as he and Margot are on the run in Germany before returning to the UK to confront their hunters. This provides a far stronger backdrop for the trilogy’s political machinations. Ralph Fiennes’ prime minister always provided the most compelling adversary to Worricker, aided by his zealous personal conviction — Hare’s script draws clear parallels with Tony Blair’s ambitions as a statesman. In contrast to the earlier films, Nighy’s charm deliberately slips as Worricker finds himself on the warpath and often outmanoeuvred. The story’s conclusion is not entirely predictable despite leaning into a number of tropes, though ultimately it feels more satisfying if you view the Worricker trilogy as a character study of its protagonist rather than focusing on the overarching narrative.

7/10

Worricker trilogy: Page Eight | Turks & Caicos | Salting the Battlefield

QuickView: Turks & Caicos (2014)

“Nowadays, people will go anywhere to avoid paying tax. A quick visit to Lichtenstein, Monaco, maybe Jersey; empty the vaults of private wealth, and you could write off the world’s debt.”

Curtis Pelissier

Following the events of Page Eight, former intelligence analyst Johnny Worricker has his quiet life of self-imposed exile in the Caribbean disturbed when he is recognised by a visitor to the islands. The tropical location may at first give the impression of a bigger budget globetrotting adventure, but the stage remains small, confined almost entirely to the Turks & Caicos Islands. In his desire to keep his head down and protect himself through friendships with the locals, Nighy’s charming Worricker has more in common with Rick in Casablanca than with Bond. The plot is a poorly paced follow-the-money affair in which Worricker finds himself aiding the CIA out of self-interest, none of which is as compelling as the whistleblowing story of Page Eight. Hare throws in pithy analysis of global fianance and politics, but it feels scattershot. Bill Nighy carries the film but it again attracts a strong supporting cast, even if the choice of Christopher Walken will leave some bemused.

6/10

Worricker trilogy: Page Eight | Turks & Caicos | Salting the Battlefield

QuickView: Page Eight (2011)

“Deciding who to trust. That’s what the job is.”

Johnny Worricker

The political machinations behind the British intelligence services lend themselves well to suspenseful, slow burn thrillers. Page Eight falls on the quieter end of the spectrum, following a senior analyst with politically sensitive information. It may lack the deeper intrigue of Le Carré or the urgency of Eye in the Sky, but the excellent cast is enthralling to watch even as the plot unfolds in a largely predictable fashion. David Hare is generally content to pose questions rather than to answer to them, including the purpose of intelligence services in the 21st century, and the extent to which these organisations view survival as more important than the truth. Where he does take a stance, however, is the need for truth to allow us to grieve.

7/10

Worricker trilogy: Page Eight | Turks & Caicos | Salting the Battlefield

"A film is a petrified fountain of thought."

(CC) BY-NC 2003-2023 Priyan Meewella

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