British retirees travel to India to take up residence in what they believe is a newly restored hotel. Less luxurious than its advertisements, the Marigold Hotel nevertheless slowly begins to charm in unexpected ways.
[It] feels too calculated to offer anything more than disposable entertainment at best, and cheaply manipulative emotional kicks at worst.
The pleasure of seeing a supergroup of Brit-veterans soon withers in an OAP comedy that plumps for light laughs over deeper insights.
Mainstream cinema has ignored the grey pound too, tending instead to cater for adolescent boys. What a pity, then, that TBEMH is as schematic as any summer event movie, with character arcs that could be plotted on a graph from the minute our ensemble arrives at the eponymous, dubiously named lodgings.
Charming, delightful and highly amusing - just what you'd expect from the star studded cast of veterans.
At times, you wish the Marigold gaggle had decamped to France, where at least directors such as André Téchiné and Francois Ozon could have conjured more interesting adventures than sipping gin near a man with a full head of hair. Still, don’t be surprised if your gran loves this.
Directed by John Madden (Shakespeare In Love), it’s lively, colourful and very entertaining.
Good intentions alone do not make a great film, and it’s certainly not: but it’s sweet-natured, good-hearted and decent.
Designed to represent and serve an ignored demographic, the film can’t be faulted in its intentions, just its condescending execution, which spoon-feeds the audience in a way its characters would surely disapprove of.
A warm and charming, if somewhat forgettable, little experience.
It is oddly like an Agatha Christie thriller with all the pasteboard characters, 2D backstories and foreign locale, but no murder.
By the time we realise the movie is as thin as a wraith and as winsome as syrup, with some nice moments, it is over.
Nighy and Wilkinson keep their dignity as quietly disappointed English gents, but honestly, could they not afford to do India on their own time?
A goldie – and not just for the oldies.
It's just a tad ironic that a film in praise of new horizons should settle into such a well-worn groove.
Provided they don't mind being patronised and stereotyped by a shallow but not wholly untruthful film, then this target audience will be satisfied.
Feelgood fun for the over 50s.
Worthy sentiments, but the relentless tweeness will be too much for some tastes.
Fun in the sunset years
India: best exotic movie hell?
Penelope Wilton on enjoying a frisky exotic old age
An India tour operator's view on The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
General release. Check local listings for show times.
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