Most of us have a dream musical act we’d love to see reunited in concert. Charles Heath is a different breed of fan, a man with the vast financial resources needed to entice his favorite act out of retirement and into an intimate concert in his tiny island village off the coast of Wales. One small problem though: only one member of the defunct folk duo has been informed it’s a reunion concert, not a solo show.
Buy The Ballad of Wallis Island Blu-rayThe new feature film originated from a BAFTA-nominated 2007 short film of the same concept written by and starring Tim Key and Tom Basden, who return here in the same roles along with returning director James Griffiths. Joining the veterans is their new box-office draw, Carey Mulligan, as the informed member of the folk duo named McGwyer Mortimer. While she’s not around for the entire film, rest assured that her participation is far more than a glorified cameo, with her adding her considerable clout and talent to bolster the film’s prestige.
While the premise is so straightforward that the story unfolds in a largely predictable manner, it’s shot in an intimate, no-frills manner that allows for searingly deep character studies. There’s nothing superficial here, with the film developing intriguing, real characters navigating an emotionally fraught few days together. Just be prepared for the opening act, as it takes quite a while to peel back the layers of Charles’s seemingly clueless onion, such a social misfit that he miffs all social cues and piles on nervous quips and wordplay to the point of annoyance.
Since it’s a movie about a musical act, it runs the risk of being self-serving to any real-life rock star ambitions of its principal songsmith, Tom Basden. Thankfully, it manages to walk the fine line between believable musician and self-aggrandizing cross-promoter. This isn’t the kind of movie that halts the narrative for slickly filmed full-song musical numbers, with Basden instead delivering snippets of his handful of songs in quiet acoustic moments, mostly in the context of rehearsals for the concert. As the other half of the folk duo, Mulligan joins in as well on a few of the songs, a pleasant and welcome surprise.
As the film progresses, the characters all learn something about themselves and the others, deepening their connections to the point of revelatory change. We find out why McGwyer Mortimer means so much to Charles, we witness his halting steps toward forward momentum in his long-stalled life, and we see the gradual return of humanity to the corporate sellout solo musician who so thoroughly lost his way after the end of his creative and romantic partnership. It’s so rare to find such richly realized characters in any current films, making this wholly endearing production an absolute must-see for anyone bemoaning the demise of movies for adults. Hopefully they won’t take another 18 years to come up with their next one.
The Blu-ray presents the film in its original 2.39:1 aspect ratio with English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 sound. No bonus features or commentary are included.
