The idea of moving into a “retirement home” is anathema to most people who are younger and still healthy. However, for some of us, personal declining health and/or mental capacity, or that of a loved partner, make assisted living an acceptable option. This is especially true if you have the financial resources to live in the opulent surroundings of a place like Cooper’s Chase.
Based on the novel (one of a series) by Richard Osman, we are introduced to four elderly pensioners who meet regularly to study “cold case” murders. They are working on one that’s decades old when a very warm murder case drops in their laps. It seems that Cooper’s Chase is actually owned by three men, the most aggressive of which – played with sleazy relish by David Tennant (“Dr. Who”) – wants to convert the property into luxury condominiums and a destination venue. Another of the three is violently opposed to the plan and he is suddenly, brutally, murdered. The third has not been seen for years and is presumed dead.
This sudden murder throws the future of Cooper’s Chase and their retirement homes into doubt until the greedy developer himself is killed in the midst of a demonstration by these elderly tenants.
Director Chris Columbus (“Home Alone”) has given us a treat that embodies the characteristics of his other projects: a modest amount of mystery and danger, some clever twists, mostly pleasant characters of limited dimension, and satisfactory endings. Here it’s served up as a dainty confection as if produced by “The Great British Bake Off.”
We are entertained with some excellent performances by Helen Mirren as a retired head of the British spy group MI6, Ben Kingsley as a retired psychiatrist, Pierce Brosnan somewhat overwrought as a retired labor leader, and Celia Imrie as a former trauma nurse. Imrie is not as well known as the others, but is very familiar as a staple of British film and television. The only one of the four who is played with more that superficial representation is Mirren, whose failing husband is delightfully played by Jonathan Pryce (“Brazil”).
There are supporting roles, but only two of note: Daniel Mays plays a hilariously buffonish police inspector who is over his head in the investigation; and Richard E. Grant, who is notable in a cameo that totally wastes his talent.
All in all, it is a pleasant who-done-it in the vein of Agatha Christie and so many other British crime mysteries. However, it lacks the acerbic undertone present in so many of these tales, resulting in a visually appealling, but ultimately cloying dessert. Perhaps Chris Columbus should have added some lemon zest to his recipe.
Runtime: One hour, 58 minutes
Availability: A Netflix production, playing on that streaming service exclusively.
. . .
Join us on Facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/itsjustmovies!