Hampstead (PG)
Starring: Diane Keaton, James Norton, Brendan Gleeson
WITTY dialogue, charismatic leads – there is a lot to like about Hampstead.
Loosely-based on a true story in that there really was a guy who lived on Hampstead Heath and gained squatting rights over a parcel of land there, Hampstead is set in and on the edge of Hampstead Heath in London – a quiet piece of countryside in the bustling city.
Living near the land is American widow Emily (Diane Keaton) who since the death of her philandering husband is struggling with her crumbling apartment, fast-diminishing finances and her very English son Philip (James Norton).
Despite encouragement from her “friend” Fiona (Lesley Manville) – the somewhat villain of this piece, she is drifting through life. But then one day, while looking out across the Heath from her attic window, Emily spies a ramshackle hut, which appears to be inhabited by an unkempt man.
After witnessing him being attacked by a group of professional thugs, she calls the police and watches through her binoculars as help arrives before venturing into the woods to find him. Donald Horner (Brendan Gleeson) has lived quietly and harmoniously on the edge of the Heath for 17 years, but his lifestyle is under threat and his home is the target of property developers.
A gentle later in life love story with well-written, witty dialogue and pithy one-liners and an underlying theme of the little guy versus greed, Hampstead is mostly a little gem.
Diane Keaton seems to be having a lot of fun as Emily – though her character seems familiar, hardly a stretch and more than a touch out of place (and she looks like she provided her own clothes – her usual movie uniform right down to the beret).
However the fact she can still successfully play the romantic leading lady at 71 is pretty damned impressive.
But Gleeson (known to the younger set as Mad Eye Moody from Harry Potter) is the real star of this film. Gleeson is an irascible, grumpy joy as Donald.
And while James Norton is little more than window dressing, the support characters led by Lesley Manville (neighbour Fiona), Jason Watkins (Fiona’s flirty accountant) and Hugh Skinner (Emily’s young friend and activist) are colourful and fun.
It is hard not to think of this as Notting Hill for the over-sixties, but it is quirky and funny enough to also put you mind of Maggie Smith’s Lady In The Van.
– Tania Phillips
