SIX MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT | FILM REVIEW
Dir: Andy Goddard (12A, 99 mins)
Eddie Izzard stars in this based-on-a-true-story drama where an English coastal boarding school, home to 20 German girls and their German teacher, becomes increasingly compromised and extreme as World War II approaches. Izzard plays Thomas Miller, a teacher sent to the school after his predecessor disappears in mysterious circumstances. There he finds the girls indulged in the rise of fascism, viewing newsreels praising Hitler, while Ilse – the German teacher, played by Carla Juri – and Judi Dench’s headmistress benevolently watch over.
Miller is himself spying on them, trying to work out what these girls will do as war approaches. He soon finds himself entangled in crosses and doublecrosses with government men James D’Arcy and Celyn Jones, as they chase him quite a lot – through the countryside and along Penarth pier, standing in for the coastal town of Bexhill-on-sea. Jim Broadbent also cameos as a helpful bus driver, aiding Miller as he goes on the run (something Izzard’s good at, granted).
Six Minutes To Midnight’s pacing is rather off at times, the film meandering rather than ratcheting up tension and becoming a rather damp quib. The tone varies, too, with D’Arcy providing maximum ham amidst some square-jawed earnest spy business. The camera hangs on Dame Judi for far too long, and consequences are thin on the ground for most characters. It’s a fascinating true story, yet feels fumbled in its transformation to the screen via Izzard, Goddard’s and Celyn Jones’ script. The German girls are sketchily drawn, some twists are signposted and the to-and-fro between locations forced. The real story feels like it deserves a documentary rather than this flawed Sunday afternoon drama.
Released on Fri 26 Mar
words KEIRON SELF