John Malkovich delights in ‘Mr Blake At Your Service!’
Image: Image supplied by Rialto Distribution
At the age of 70, award-winning American actor John Malkovich makes a rare and much welcomed appearance in Mr Blake At Your Service!, the surprise French dramedy of the year.
He portrays Andrew Blake a grieving widowed British businessman who is disenchanted with his life and on an impulse, returns to the manor house in France where he met his French wife 40 years earlier.
He receives employment as a butler and in the course of the movie transitions into something of an angel in disguise, assisting the household staff and notably the lady of the manor, with their problems.
Mr Blake returned to the manor house for the past but ultimately felt happy and fulfilled in the present.
Mr Blake At Your Service! is a delightful feel-good movie that deals with aging, loss, grief and new beginnings.
Malkovich excels in his performance and is a joy to watch, playing the role of a British gentleman who delivers his dialogue in a ‘barbarian French accent’ – a contrast to the other fluent French speaking characters.
It’s easy to understand why Malkovich accepted the role of Mr Blake. This character is something of a Saviour, a knight in shining armour who restores life into the manor house with his humour and cheeky intrusiveness.
Not only does the character of Mr Blake carry the entire movie, naturally with the help of a wonderful supporting cast, but he also delivers all the humorous lines.
“I know I’m old, but I didn’t fight in Waterloo!” he retorts in a scene which left audiences gasping for air with laughter.
Malkovich shines in the role. Rarely does a 70-year-old actor have the opportunity to play such a likeable and warm character.
This is an impeccably crafted movie, exquisitely filmed in an old atmospheric castle that may leave audiences pondering, ‘If only these walls could speak…”.
How wonderful would it be to have our very own Mr Blake at our service to alleviate all our day-to-day problems!
★★★★
In cinemas now.
