Yahoo Lifestyle ‘The Ballad of Wallis Island’ Review: James Griffiths’ Soulful and Winsome Crowd-Pleaser Makes the Heart Sing
In James Griffiths’ delightfully eccentric comedy “The Ballad of Wallis Island,” Charles (Tim Key) is the kind of sweet human being you instantly want all the good things for. It might be tough, for instance, to feel genuinely happy that someone who isn’t in urgent financial need had won a big-time lottery twice — unless of course that person is Charles. The soft-spoken chap is so warm-hearted, open-handed and full of puns that you won’t actually mind that good fortune has repeatedly found Charles and allowed him to retire to a gorgeous (fictional) Welsh island, after he traveled all around the world. (To paraphrase him, “Kathmandu? More like Kathman-did.”)
A co-writer (along with co-lead and his longtime comedy partner Tom Basden), Key is the main reason this cozily windswept and romantically sea-sprayed fable — based on the trio’s 2007 short film “The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island” — succeeds in earning the goodwill of the audience. The winsome result brings to mind the humanity of John Carney’s music-driven films, as well as the nostalgic vibe of Jesse Peretz’s “Juliet, Naked.” The natural warmth Key exudes through Charles instantly halts any preconceived notions we might have about an indulgent millionaire following his heart’s desires.
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A two-time BAFTA-nominated mainstay of British comedy (best known as Alan Partridge’s sidekick Simon), Key affably plays Charles as a good-natured fan who would like nothing more than to bring together his favorite band, McGwyer-Mortimer. They are a folksy duo who have long since split up, both as musical and romantic partners. But Charles would do everything to make his dream come true, including spending a good chunk of his cash to get them to play him a concert for exactly one audience member: himself.
Bringing natural charisma to his part, Basden plays the initially gruff Herb McGwyer as a cool superstar musician. Herb is short on cash to produce his next album, so he accepts Charles’s offer and arrives on the Wallis Island shores, stepping knee-deep into the cool waters, only to fall into the sea, soaking his phone in the process. It’s a big surprise to him that Charles has funded this trip for his personal satisfaction alone, and that Herb would be staying at his quaint and handsomely rustic house as a guest. A constantly running tap in his room (which, to glass-half-full Charles, just works “a little too well”), bewildered local islanders and being completely cut off from the mainland soon prove to be least of Herb’s worries.
Enter Nell Mortimer, soulfully played by Carey Mulligan, and her husband Michael (Akemnji Ndifornyen), arriving on the island to Herb’s shock. Stuck in a rut both musically and romantically, he protests their involvement at first, with Nell also ambivalent about all the old wounds this reunion might open up. There is still some chemistry there, however, which is palpable when they harmonize and vocalize together, singing stirring and engaging tunes with gorgeous lyrics (many written by Basden). It’s a spiritual pleasure to watch them make music together and something altogether divine to spot the glimmer in Charles’ eyes when he takes in their art, as if he were watching Baez and Dylan, who were undoubtedly real-world inspirations for McGwyer-Mortimer.
Elsewhere, Sian Clifford playfully portrays a witty and hospitable local grocery shop owner who might become Charles’ romantic interest, while also offering some help to the out-of-towners. As feelings swell and tensions rise across the board, Griffiths and cinematographer G. Magni Ágústsson make lyrical use of the island’s expansive landscapes, sharp cliffs, vast skies and seas, gifting us one of the most cinematically poetic locations on earth since Nora Fingscheidt’s “The Outrun.” Production designer Alexandra Toomey and costume designer Gabriela Yiaxis excel at character-specific work (old-fashioned knick-knacks around Charles’s house and a geometric-patterned dress Mulligan wears are especially memorable), making the whole affair lived-in and authentic in an effortless way.
Because “The Ballad of Wallis Island” wants to give some time alone to Herb and Nell, Michael feels a little absent from the story at times. But as writers, Basden and Key avoid toothless syrupy sentiments all the same, and handle the melancholic resolution of Herb and Nell’s story in a masterful and realistic way that rings true to the heart. Art can have a knack for turning two deeply feeling and thinking creative collaborators into lovers. But no matter how great and fulfilling the art may be, a broken heart remains broken sometimes. In that, everyone’s individual journey here makes sense.
Alive with plenty of droll British humor and with a music-filled, picturesque finale that is sincerely earned, “The Ballad of Wallis Island” is the best kind of crowd-pleaser: disarming, joyful and full of compassion for its oddball characters. This Sundance charmer doesn’t hit a false note.
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