'Dean Spanley' a complex and rewarding film

Director: Toa Fraser

Cast: Peter O’Toole, Jeremy Northam, Sam Neill, Brian Brown

Cert: G

O’Toole’s film from first to last, 'Dean Spanley' and a wonderfully complex yet entertaining film that’s full of observation, heart, humour and pathos.

It’s very much a film that requires your full concentration, and richly rewards you for your rapt attention.

A period piece set in Edwardian England – much of the humour is very much that of the underplayed and subtle British variety – the story concerns the emotional journey undertaken by Fisk Snr (O’Toole) and Fisk Jnr (Northam), a journey that becomes a roller-coaster of growing personal awareness.

A strange film in many ways, but one that rises well above what is mostly being flickered on our screens these days.

Star Rating: 4/5