OCTOBER 3, 2017
“Victoria & Abdul” would seem to have everything going for it.
It’s very “Masterpiece Theatre” -like with an extra dollop of humor thrown in, and we know how much we Americans love our Royals. It touches on xenophobia and tests religious tolerance. It’s set in lavish palaces and displays elaborate costumes. And, of course, the film’s secret weapon is its star, the beloved Dame Judi Dench.
This is Dench’s second go-round at the character of Queen Victoria, the first being 1997’s “Mrs. Brown,” in which Dench played Victoria as a much younger monarch. Here, Dench’s Victoria is 81 and is tired of being queen. Every day is the same, only with different faces, whom she has to meet and greet, and she even falls soundly asleep during state meals.
It seems that all the pieces have been brought together to make “Victoria & Abdul” a big hit at the box office. And it is, at least the film’s early engagements in big cities.
There’s only one problem with “Victoria & Abdul.” There’s little drama in this drama.
What drama there is begins in India with Abdul Karim (Ali Fazal), a Muslim, who along with his cohort Mohammed (Adeel Akhtar, who was so good as Kumail Nanjiani’s brother in “The Big Sick”), are dispatched to England to present a ceremonial coin to Queen Victoria in appreciation of her role as Empress of India.They leave with a stern word of advice — they must never EVER look the queen directly in the eye.
Of course, that’s what Abdul unashamedly does. But instead of a royal rebuke, the queen becomes intrigued by this strange newcomer. To keep him from returning to India, Victoria brings him on as a servant in the palace. Victoria and Abdul begin to talk and soon form a fast friendship. She is surprised to learn that he is a Muslim and becomes fascinated by Abdul’s native language, Urdu. She releases Abdul from his servitude and asks him to become her Urdu teacher, or as Abdul puts it, her Munshi.
This is all well and nice, but we’re almost an hour into the film, and nothing has actually happened, at least in the way of any conflict. Discord finally appears within the queen’s circle of advisers — played by the great line-up of Eddie Izzard, the late Tim Pigott-Smith, Olivia Williams, Paul Higgins and Michael Gambon — who shake their heads whenever they see Victoria and Abdul together, tut-tutting that it’s barbaric to allow a Muslim in the palace. They grumble and threaten to quit, but you can probably guess the result of their action (or non-action).
And that’s it. That’s all the drama that “Victoria & Abdul” can muster.
The blame goes primarily to screenwriter Lee Hall. Sure, he has given Dench some great one-liners (all of which are in the trailer). But he seems to have forgotten the Screenwriting 101 rule that the essence of drama is conflict. In addition, although he has created a rich character for Dench to portray, Abdul is largely a cypher in the script. Fazal brings enormous charm to the role, which makes Victoria’s interest in him a little more believable, but otherwise, he’s a blank. In fact, when his burka-clad wife and mother-in-law show up midway through the film, it was a surprise — Abdul is such a tool for the plot that it’s easy to forget his character had a life back in India before the film started.
If your mother or grandmother are looking to find a nice, safe movie to enjoy, “Victoria & Abdul” would be a perfect choice. It’s nothing if not safe. But if your mother or grandmother are looking for something more in their entertainment, it might be best to look elsewhere.
GRADE: C+
