Apparently, anything can be outsourced to India, even old age. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel follows a group of British retirees (Judi Dench, Bill Nighy, Tom Wilkinson, Maggie Smith) who decide to leave the idyllic isles of Britain to `outsource` their golden years to highly affordable and extremely super exotic India (don`t ask me why I`ve started sounding like an Indian advertisement, it`s just addictive). As movie logic dictates, they arrive at the hotel only to find that it`s current state leaves much to be desired, despite the best efforts of its charmingly incompetent hotel manager (Dev Patel). Soon however, their shared experiences and individuals stories become increasingly entwined with the fate of the old hotel.
Not so much a single story than several different narratives wrapped into one, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is a generally well-played film; a refreshingly mature yarn that focuses on characters with a greater complexity of regrets than the usual lovelorn teenagers you find in rom-coms. Dame Judi Dench is luminous as bereaved widow Evelyn, and the rest of the veteran cast acquit themselves admirably, with honorable mention going to Tom Wilkinson, who plays a closeted gay barrister yearning to find his first love.
Like the subcontinent on which it is set, The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is bursting at its seams with stories, and the sheer crowdedness of the film may cause the story to sag at certain moments, or for certain narrative threads to be underdeveloped. Despite this, the film is charming in execution, geniune in intent, and generally an uplifting experience.
Summary: Not the Ritz Carlton, but charming nonetheless.
Rating: 3.5/5