5/13/13

Papadopoulos & Sons

This presents a quandary, it's sappy and predictable, there are no surprises, the characters are pleasant and the movie, directed by Marcus Markou, is mildly diverting. Our 2013 Seattle International Film Festival audience was a bit testy after sitting through such a non-artistic entry from the UK. On the other hand, Yours Truly had a very nice time. I LIKE sappy and predictable, so I was happy.

We start in a gorgeous white-on-white mansion, with a widower, his housekeeper, and his three children; two are teenagers and one is nine. Their life is one of entitlement and ease. His lawyer's office is in the green glass building fondly called "The Gherkin" in London. (It really DOES look like a pickle!)

Here are the actors and their characters:
  • Stephen Dillane ("Game of Thrones") is Harry Papadopoulos, a phenomenally successful businessman, ready to build a shopping center in London when the bottom falls out of international banking.
  • Georgia Groome ("The Holding") is his daughter Katie, forced to re-write her requirements for friends.
  • Frank Dillane ("Harry Potter") plays his son James, who wants to be a botanist, NOT a businessman, and yes, he really IS Stephen Dillane's son.
  • Thomas Underhill ("Mother's Milk") is his son Theo, who can see patterns and trends, loves to create order from chaos, and would LOVE to go into business with his father.
  • Georges Corraface ("Without Borders") is Spiros, his ebullient brother, who never holds a grudge, is always upbeat and a little overdue to make amends for his past shortcomings, per the ninth step of his AA program. He had been in the fish-and-chip business with his brother back "in the day."
  • Cosima Shaw (Lots of TV) is Sophie, a lovely legal assistant assigned to negotiate a new mortgage which will allow Harry to reclaim his empire.
Can you see where this is going? No bad guys, no sweaty bodies, no gunplay or vehicular mayhem, just decent people trying to sort out their lives with no blowie uppie stuff. And YES, I found it pleasant. In fact, I own the DVD.
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Here is a preview:
http://www.imdb.com/video/wab/vi2957288217/
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