Making its world premiere at this year's edition of the London Film Festival, Sean Mathias adapts the play Frank and Percy, originally written by Ben Weatherill and now reimagined for the screen by Martin Sherman. Starring the originators of the two lead roles, Ian McKellen and Roger Allam, Frank and Percy centers around the platonic relationship between two elderly dogwalkers, who come to develop a more profound connection in this sweet tale of companionship, ageing and connection.
A romantic comedy that manages both sides of the bargain with ease and success, Frank and Percy is one of the most delightful surprises of the year, registering a feature film packed with humour, tenderness and a whole lot of sweetness for good measure. Directed by Mathias, it may lean a little too sentimentally for some, undeniably saccharine but mostly offset by the uniqueness of its premise: how often do we see a romantic story featuring older leads to say nothing of it being LGBTQ+ celebratory? Mathias manages a strong visual palette for the film, making the London streets in and around Hampstead Heath where the film is set a character in its own right, bringing a geographical richness to the film that really allows it to shine.
Sherman's translation to the screen does not quite manage to shake its source material roots, with some of the dialogue seemingly lifted from the stage directly, its overly flowery dialogue a little unsuited to the format and certainly distracting at times. Nevertheless, the screenplay thrives in crafting two very distinct characters, whose experiences are uniquely defined and allowed to develop of their own accord - Frank's exuberant gay life conflicts with his years of loneliness, while the loss that has shaped Percy's later life provides new bearings on facing new opportunities for freedom - which is a space rarely afforded to elder members of the community. Perhaps its contrivances and familiar plotting will feel frustrating for some who prefer their stories a little more creatively rendered, but there's sometimes beautifully simplistic about it, a trait Frank and Percy certainly runs with.
Ian McKellen and Roger Allam could not be better suited as the titular pair, a fantastically matched duo. They are amusing as frequently as they are heartwarming, embracing the film's various themes and delivering multi-faceted turns that enrich the other's work too. Their chemistry, no doubt borne from their decades-long experience with these characters, is superb, taking the strangers-to-lovers tale in their stride. Further populated with a plethora of amusing supporting turns from a line-up of British talent, including Stephen Fry, Ncuti Gatwa, Jessica Gunning and Joanna Lumley, Frank and Percy really is a demonstration of the importance of coming together to look after one another.
Endlessly charming and imbued with a profoundly British quality, Frank and Percy brings a fresh outlook to the rom-com genre, a heartwarming queer contribution to cinema that has often overlooked elder members of the community. While it never escapes its stage roots and, if anything, makes me yearn to see it performed on the stage, it is nonetheless a deeply enjoyable, generally well-crafted and terrifically performed endeavour that will warm the hearts of those who get to experience it. Handled correctly, this has all the makings of a new silver screen favourite.