Ian McKellen and Roger Allam return to Frank and Percy in a film adaptation of the stage play. Martin Sherman expands Ben Weatherill’s two-character work, with Sean Mathias again directing the story of two older men who meet while walking their dogs.
Allam plays a widowed retired teacher, while McKellen portrays an academic. Their encounters on Hampstead Heath develop into a relationship that opens possibilities for companionship and change later in life.
The Guardian’s review welcomes the film’s warmth while noting moments of sentimentality and broadly drawn supporting characters. Joanna Lumley’s performance receives particular praise. The assessment distinguishes the production’s generous tone from questions about how successfully an intimate stage premise grows into an expanded screen story.
