Americanised plot works in this film about rock'n'roll pensioners, writes Christina Powley.
Director: Paul Andrew Williams
Cast: Terence Stamp, Vanessa Redgrave, Christopher Eccleston, Gemma Arterton, Barry Martin, Anne Reid, Elizabeth Counsell
Rating: (M)
5 stars (out of 5)
Usually I am making snide remarks about American films snitching a true story from another location and Americanising it - mostly it is British war heroics that become American derring-do.
Song for Marion (Rialto and Metro) turns that on its head. An American group of oldies started singing choral versions of heavy metal songs and became an internet sensation but here the pensioners with a taste for rock are laying down beats somewhere in northern England.
Vanessa Redgrave plays warm-hearted Marion, a cancer survivor who loves singing with her mates in the frisky choir.
Her devoted but grumpy other half, Arthur (Terence Stamp), thinks they are mad, but if she wants to make a fool of herself, who is he to stop her.
It all gets thrown into high relief when Marion's cancer returns and all the doctors can offer her is to eat as much ice cream as she likes.
Marion likes ice cream but she really loves the singing and wants to continue even when it costs her physically. Arthur is horrified. He wants her tucked safely away with him, not larking with her mates.
Best thing: Vanessa Redgrave is as wonderful as you would expect but it is Terence Stamp who surprises. I have mainly seen him play villains, but here as a decent man trying to cope, he is heartbreaking.
Worst thing: The rest of the choir is used as light relief, which is a bit of a waste when you have an actress of the calibre of Anne Reid in the mix.
See it with: A jumbo box of tissues and sunglasses to wear afterwards.
