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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mel O&#039;Drama" data-source="post: 335211" data-attributes="member: 23">The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel for the Elderly And Beautiful (2011) <img src="https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=http%3A%2F%2F2.bp.blogspot.com%2F-O87qpgac0vc%2FT0UVN3SdVwI%2FAAAAAAAABbE%2FI-eA9nNsQ0o%2Fs1600%2FBESTEXOTICMARIGOLDHOTEL.jpg&f=1&nofb=1" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="width: 877px" />While I knew almost nothing of the premise, this cast made it a must-watch. There's such a sense of event about so many acting heavyweights gathering in one place that   it felt a little like a British, senior citizens version of Marvel's Avengers films. That first shot of them all lined up at the airport, eyeing one another with reserved suspicion felt particularly impressive. I counted at least three Dames.Old and unpleasant is funny, and two of the Dames got to be just that.Penelope Wilton was wonderful as Jean, the snarky, bitter wife, chipping away at hubby Douglas (Bill Nighy) and clearly hating every minute of her life. She had me in her very first scene where they were shown round their retirement bungalow by a patronising young man who pointed out the panic button on the wall. "What happens if I don't happen to conveniently collapse over there right beside the button?" she drily asks. And when shown the rails around the walls to enable movement, she questions why there can't be one down the middle of the room so she doesn't have to walk all the way round. Naturally, she complains about the heat and smells and food, berating a waiter for claiming their milk is "very pasteurised" and gives her husband hell for accepting a chapati from a stranger on a bus. It was never going to end well, but Jean is one of my favourite things about this film.We meet Maggie Smith's Muriel in hospital, complaining about the dark-skinned staff and demanding to be seen by an English doctor. She's there to discuss a hip operation and on being told the wait will be at least six months she complains:Naturally, on travelling to India for her operation she smuggles in numerous packets of Hob Nobs and PG Tips and is later forced to uncover the mystery of the interweb when supplies begin to run dangerously low. Meanwhile, Celia Imrie gets to vamp it up a little as the woman on the search for a rich husband, yet fearing that her nymphette days are over. Tom Wilkinson gives a nice subtle performance as the retired judge returning to India to find the man he'd fallen in love with four decades earlier (the characters' varying responses on discovering his sexuality make it  fun. There's no out and out judgement, but there are a few open jaws and surprised little sounds). And Judi Dench gives a typically Judi Dench performance (no bad thing) as recently widowed Evelyn, on a journey of discovery.In fact, the film is made up of numerous little journeys of discovery. With its large-ish ensemble cast and lots of different histories and current predicaments to explore, this feels rather like a condensed version of an ongoing series. The diverse characters come together nicely, there's a great deal of heart and warmth and some touching moments to balance out the laughs (the death of one of the characters is absolutely beautiful in execution, with some memorably symbolic imagery accompanying it). The Indian scenery is beautiful, one can feel the heat and almost taste the various scents thick in the air.There's a lot going on here and despite the fact that some avenues are only touched in passing it still feels satisfying and complete while leaving me wanting more. These two hours went by very quickly, and I hope to watch the sequel in due course.</blockquote>

Verification: What month follows July?