The Thursday Murder Club

Matt Roush says...

Retired? Yes. Tired? Never. Such is the delightful vibe generated by old pros and Oscar winners Helen Mirren and Ben Kingsley, joined by former Bond hero Pierce Brosnan and the great character actress Celia Imrie (The Diplomat, Better Things, and so many more) in a thoroughly entertaining British mystery-comedy directed by Chris Columbus and based on Richard Osman‘s series of novels. (Let’s hope there will be more.) Mirren, once the groundbreaking star of the peerless procedural Prime Suspect, is Elizabeth, the ringleader of the titular club that gathers on Thursdays at their remarkably posh retirement castle to peruse cold-case files for fun. (They’re like the Only Murders in the Building trio minus the podcast.) Elizabeth, who hints at a past in government espionage, is joined by psychiatrist Ibrahim (Kingsley) and former union activist Ron (Brosnan)—and as the film begins, they recruit former nurse and recently widowed Joyce (Imrie) into their circle for her medical expertise. As the genre demands, fresh murders connected to the home propel the quartet into investigating on their own—much to the consternation of DCI Chris Hudson (an amusing Daniel Mays) and the delight of his lackey, constable Donna de Freitas (Naomi Ackie). David Tennant chews the scenery as a villainous landlord, and Lucifer‘s Tom Ellis brings generational warmth as Ron’s loyal son Jason, an ex-boxer who’s found a new career in reality TV. Jason adores these curious coots, and so will you.

What's Worth Watching (Aug 28)