Quartet

One of the most celebrated actors in world cinema, two-time Academy Award winner Dustin Hoffman (Rain Man, Kramer vs. Kramer) steps behind the camera for the first time with this charming adaptation of Ronald Harwood’s eponymous play, which screened as a Special Presentation at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival®. Quartet tells the story of retired opera singers and lifelong chums Wilf (Billy Connolly, Fido) and Reggie (Tom Courtenay, Nicholas Nickleby), who, together with their former colleague Cissy (Pauline Collins, Albert Nobbs, You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger), reside in Beecham House, a retirement home for aged musicians. Each year on Giuseppe Verdi’s birthday, the residents arrange a concert to raise funds for their home. It is usually a smooth-running, perfectly pleasant event, evoking warm memories of old times and grand traditions. Enter stage right Jean (Maggie Smith, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Ladies in Lavender), Reggie’s ex and the fourth, most famous member of the former quartet. Having recently fallen on hard times, the aged diva checks into Beecham, and it’s not long before long-buried grievances rise to the surface, rivalries resume, and plans begin to fall apart. Reconciliation is not on the program, but the show must go on—right? Under Hoffman’s affectionate and attentive gaze, these marvellous veteran actors shine. Connolly is as wise-cracking and boisterous as ever, while Smith is divine as a charismatic old tigress who can make one wither with the slightest glance. Yet beneath all the playful banter there is a quiet fire, an urge to feel alive again, to use art as a way of raging against the dying of the light. This is a sweet, delightful and moving film — and an auspicious debut.

CRITICAL NOTES

"Dustin Hoffman’s directing bow at 75 finds a perfect match in the well-heeled subject of Quartet, a charming tale of aging musicians whose passion for life continues undiminished in a stately English manor filled with humor, caring and of course great music." —Deborah Young, The Hollywood Reporter

Director: Dustin Hoffman
Cast: Maggie Smith, Michael Gambon and Billy Connolly
Year: 2012
Runtime: 95 minutes
Country: UK
Language: English
Distributor: Alliance Films


Ratings: ON NR / BC NR / AB NR / SK NR / MB NR / QC NR / Maritmes NR

SCREENING DATES 

Date	Circuit Centre	Location
June 24, 2013	Reel Alternatives Cowichan Theatre	Duncan, BC
June 24, 2013	Arts Council of New Westminster Massey Theatre	New Westminster, BC
June 26, 2013	Starlight Cinema Lebovic Centre for the Arts and Entertainment	Stouffville, ON
July 17, 2013	Georgina Community Film Circuit Stephen Leacock Theatre	Georgina, ON
September 12, 2013	Bayfield Film Society Bayfield Old Town Hall	Bayfield, ON
September 16, 2013	Friends of the Cinema Prince Charles Theatre	Creston, BC
October 21, 2013	Hudson Film Society Hudson Village Theatre	Hudson, QC
November 25, 2013	Golden Ears Movie Series (G.E.M.S.) The Act	Maple Ridge, BC