A shaggy dog story that will warm the heart of even the meanest scrooge.

An interesting project from the outset. Directed by New Zealand playwright Toa Fraser, Dean Spanley is a NZ/UK co-production based on the novella My Talks with Dean Spanley by Baron Dunsany. A top notch story, with great visuals and a master cast really draw this feature to the top of the stack.

Leon Narby’s cinematography sticks to the the common colour palette for an Edwardian period piece. But the camera movement feels much less restricted than your run of the mill costume drama. The film is lit beautifully in a very painterly fashion. Barely a scene goes by that cannot be appreciated as a still. For someone interested in visuals, this is reason enough to see this film.

Though Dean Spanley indulges in the New Zealand tradition of a very masculine cast this can be overlooked as it pits some of the best film actors from New Zealand and England together. Sam Neil is flawless in portraying the tricky role of the Dean. It’s refreshing to see Neil in such a likeable role, it brings back that sense of hometown pride we in New Zealand so often get from our stars of cinema. Meanwhile Peter O’Toole gives an intense performance visiting extremes in what has been called, hopefully prematurely, a “career-capping performance”*. Jeremy Northram, Bryan Brown and Judy Parfitt are wonderful in themselves and compliment Neil and O’Toole very well.

I went into this film having not read the book and having viewed a trailer that, thankfully, gave very little away. Less revealing trailers seem to be increasing as a trend, something I appreciate as I feel it’s often given me a better movie experience. I struggled to think of what precisely to say about the story, other than my affection for it. While writing this review I happened across screenwriter Alan Sharp’s interview with On Film in which he recalls Northam as being “unable to describe [the film] in a pitch sort of way.” Don’t despair, there is a story, and not one that is pinned on some Shyamalanian twist. My concern here is that Dean Spanley is an experience best enjoyed first hand, rather than as a hazy but well-meant recollection. Any description of such a story would lack the nuances, the tone; it would lack the ride.

Charming, funny, touching, unique. Dean Spanley reads as a cherished story from childhood with all the grown up complexity expected from a feature film. I recommend this film to all.

*Toronto International Film Festival