The Duke (2020)

Director: Roger Michell

Starring: Jim Broadbent, Helen Mirren, Heather Craney, Stephen Rashbrook

In 1961, Kempton Bunton, a 60 year old taxi driver, steals Goya’s portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London.

Dorothy Bunton (Helen Mirren) is a housekeeper for a highly respected family. She do things by the book, and is strict in her own home when it comes to order. Her husband, Kempton (Jim Broadbent), on the other had, can’t keep a job and likes to take chances.

When Kempton refuses to pay his TV license, he is jailed for thirteen days. Believing pensioners should not pay for a TV license, he goes on a 2-day trip to petition for free TV. When no-one listens to his plea, he steals a portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London, saying he will return it when pensioners are exempted from paying for a TV license. The film mainly revolves around his trial. But ‘The Duke’ is no courtroom drama. It is a hilarious depiction of a man fighting for what he believes in, petitioning on behalf of pensioners, and the events following the ‘theft’ of the painting.

Let’s be honest, ‘The Duke’ would not have been so funny and enjoyable without the wonderful Jim Broadbent, who is just fabulous as Kempton. Based on a true story, this was a very entertaining movie, and there’s even a twist…

‘The Duke’ received award nominations for Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Film, and Best First Screenplay.

Would I watch it again? I think so, yes.