First Hit: A very inspirational, delightful and fun film.
Sandra (Imelda Staunton) is married to Mike (John Sessions) who has just received his MBE from the British Crown. They live in a big house and Sandra is a dutiful wife giving everything of herself to support her husband.
During a party she walks in on Mike making-out with their mutual friend Pamela (Josie Lawrence) and Mike tells her that they've had the affair going on for five years. Mike has no intention of stopping the affair.
Sandra walks out of the house and goes to her sister Bif's (Celia Imrie) flat which is in a very crowded common person's neighborhood. Bif is an adventurer. At about age 70, she takes dancing classes with others her age, rides a bike and goes swimming in a outdoor pond facility. Her flat is messy. Her life has been and is lived as fully as she can make it.
Sandra and Bif have not been in contact with each other for years and their two juxtaposed lifestyles make it difficult for them to live together, but gentle nudging from Bif and her friends, Charlie (Timothy Spall), Ted (David Hayman), and Jackie (Joanna Lumley), she begins to realize she's suppressed her life for Mike and slowly becomes more joyous and carefree.
At their mutual dance class, they learn new steps and put on a spontaneous mashup performance that gets filmed and goes viral. They get invited to Rome to perform.
After Bif passes away, Mike and Pamela break up and Mike realizes he misses what he had. He asks Sandra to come back into their home. She gives it a try, but the lessons she's learned about herself from her newfound friends require her step into her life and find her own feet.
Staunton is fantastic as a once brave woman re-finding her source of inspiration for living her life. Sessions is excellent as the stuffy brit who took advantage of his wife's loyalty and lived only for himself. Imrie was amazing as Sandra's sister Bif. Her edge was perfectly appropriate for the part. I loved her story about having only one love while they were in Rome. Spall was sublime as the loyal husband who has a wife with alzheimer's. I loved how he got his van back when it was confiscated. Hayman was wonderful as one of the dance team and a close friend of Charlie. Lumley was great as one of the dance team and inspirational friend. Meg Leonard and Nick Moorcroft wrote and wonderfully touching script. Richard Loncraine did an excellent job of directing this ensemble of performers to deliver a wonderfully inspiring film.
Overall: This film was filled with emotion through endearing characters that most everyone could relate to.