They weren’t the biggest band in the world, but for awhile there, they were the biggest band in the world to Charles (Tim Key). Now that he’s alone and flush with cash (thanks to not one, but two big lottery wins), there’s nothing he’d like more than to reunite said band — known as Mortimer McGwyer, after members Nell Mortimer (Carey Mulligan) and Herb McGwyer (Tom Basden) — on his far-flung island home for a very private gig. What could possibly go wrong?
While James Griffiths’ “The Ballad of Wallis Island” is built on a smidge of deception — Nell and Herb long ago parted ways, both personally and professionally, and it’s quite clear Herb wouldn’t have agreed to such a gig if he’d known Nell would be there — the film is quite warm-hearted. Charles is a dad-joke-spouting oddball, and while his relentless spew of horrible puns and gags might initially rankle, they eventually speak to his intense loneliness and real desire for connection. Bringing Mortimer McGwyer to his stunning island home is an act of real love, both for himself and his own long-lost love.
Herb doesn’t want to hear it. When the nearly washed-up rock star quite literally washes up on Wallis Island — “Isn’t there a harbor?,” he bellows before plunging face-first into the surf from a tiny boat, the island’s only mode of entrance — it’s obvious he’s not going to vibe with whatever Charles is throwing down. And that’s before Nell and (gulp) her husband Michael (Akemnji Ndifornyen) show up. It’s not hijinks that ensue, more low-key emotional revelations, set to song and in the register of a John Carney joint.
Long-time collaborators Griffiths, Basden, and Key have been noodling with the concept of the film for quite some time, initially conceiving of it as short film “The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island,” which won best short at The Edinburgh Film Festival and was nominated for a BAFTA in 2007. That these characters — Basden and Key wrote both the short and this feature together, with Basden himself penning over two dozen songs for the film — feel so lived in and real shouldn’t surprise, and the addition of Mulligan only adds still more depth to the proceedings.
This trio could easily be reduced to tropes or archetypes: the sell-out rock star (Herb has moved into pop music in the intervening years, it’s demeaning as all hell), the crunchy has-been (these days, Nell sells chutney at the local farmers market), and the kooky fan (Charles’ nutty jokes and non-stop yammer barely conceal a broken heart), but Basden and Key know their guys and gal, and where they need to go.
Consider the mystery of why Nell and Herb broke up all those years ago, which another film would likely treat as some sort of skeleton key to the entire thing, the kind of plot twist deployed at a moment that requires a big, blustery emotional revelation. Instead, Griffiths and his collaborators expect the audience will grow to understand why these two parted to begin with, based on where they are now and even where they were way back when. It’s a loving choice, both to the film’s characters and its audience.
Basden’s songs similarly had a warm texture to the film, and while they might not be as catchy as other tracks in similar films, he and Mulligan make wonderful music together, and their fractured bond is most believable when they’re singing together. The result is a cozy crowdpleaser with real heart and some lovely songs, and one that doesn’t trade honesty for predictable beats.
Grade: B
Focus Features will release “The Ballad of Wallis Island” in limited theaters on Friday, March 28.
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