I thought this was going to be a gentle comedy. Instead it turned out to be a tale of sadness and redemption. I enjoyed that more.

I went to see this film at BUFS this past week (Brock University Film Series) in Niagara, Canada. I had been really looking forward to it purely because of Maggie Smith. She did not disappoint but Kristin Scott Thomas did. Kevin Kline was also good but what really bugged me was I could tell right away it was a play turned into a film. I'm not a huge fan of plays made into films because there is too much dialogue and it takes place on one or two stages.

The opera singer on the banks of the Seine and the multiple shots of Notre Dame Cathedral were also irritating although I did enjoy Kevin singing along with her at the end.

It amazes me how selfish people can be ably illustrated by Maggie Smith's character and Kevin Kline's father in the film. Their actions screw up their children and spouses. However, even though the film tackled that topic very well indeed, I thought the happy ending was just not believable even if it was welcome.

It was set up as a comedy but it's really a very dark comedy and one that kept me looking at my watch.