Movie Review: To Olivia

Movie number 22 of  2022

Movie: To Olivia

Theatre: Hoyts Victoria Gardens

Stars: 3.75

My last medical leave movie turned out to be an English gem. Definitely not everybody's cup of tea, but I appreciated this film for what it is, that being a study of grief and its impact on a marriage. 

The film relates the story of Roald Dahl (Hugh Bonneville of Downton Abbey fame) and his actress wife Patricia Neal (Keeley Hawes) as they navigate marriage and parenting after the death of their eldest daughter Olivia from measles encephalitis. While Roald holes himself up in his shed, slowly drinking himself into oblivion, Neal tries to navigate new horizons in Hollywood, while trying to keep the family together. 

As time goes on, Dahl retreats more and more into himself, while Neale looks to restart her career, turning to Marty Ritt (Conleth Hill of Game of Thrones fame) who has her pegged for a role in Hud, for which she won an Oscar. The film also goes on Neal takes the children to Hollywood with her, putting some space between her and Dahl as he continues to drink, and work on his masterpiece Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Sam Heughan of  Outlander fame plays a pretty wonderful Paul Newman. 

By the end of the film, the family are once again whole, through some pretty stark realisations and hard work. 

John Hay's direction and screenplay is subtle, taking the story on its natural path from happiness, to sorrow and back again. It was the small details which won me over - knowing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach and Matilda as I do, small details of these books are  through the story. The set and costumes of England in the early 1960s were on point, as were all the things which parents got away with are out there on display. And children of the age really did get dressed like that. I have photos of myself in the same sorts of clothes. 

This won't be for everybody, but I enjoyed this film, especially for Bonneville and Hawes performance, and the portrayal of a family after the loss of a child. Having witnessed this in my own family, they were on point. 

Another small point, which I really appreciated. Olivia is the reason Roald Dahl and Patricia Neal actively promoted the measles vaccination - this is a well known fact. The other small fact that made me smile was that Olivia's middle name was Twenty - because $20 was all Dahl had in his pocket at the time her birth. How refreshingly and barkingly British of him. 

This one is probably only for the British Film aficinadoes like me. Still it was a very satisfying film. 

Today's song: (because the Sammy Davis version is less creepy than the original)