Review of The Lady in the Van (2015) by Jonathan B — 28 Dec 2016

I was only while watching this movie that I vaguely began to recall Alan Bennett speaking on some chat show about the old lady who had spent years living in a van parked on his drive. Actually, that about sums up the movie.

An old lady lives in a van on Alan Bennett's drive. While Maggie Smith is very good in the role, we don't really learn enough about the central character to actually warm to her. She undoubtedly has a fascinating story to tell, but isn't really given voice and so just comes over as an unpleasant, mentally ill vagabond who is accommodated by her well meaning neighbours.

I didn't find a great deal in the movie to laugh at or empathise with and for me, the script lacked the usual Bennett warmth. Alex Jennings puts in a good performance as the writer, and it was nice to see Francis De La Tour in the supporting role of Mrs Vaughn Williams but this does feel a somewhat pedestrian movie which could have been so much better.