The Ballad of Wallis Island Review

The Ballad of Wallis Island was this year’s Surprise Film at the Glasgow Film Festival, and what a charming wee surprise it ended up being. Here is a life-affirming comedy that celebrates connection and rejects societal isolation in all forms. It may not reinvent the genre that it belongs to, but it’s nonetheless an easy-going crowd pleaser that’s sure to leave audiences tapping their feet along to its music and earnestness.

Herb McGwyer (Carey Mulligan), Herb is reduced to playing at minor gigs and events. Thus, he accepts an offer to play a gig hosted by an eccentric lottery winner named Charles (Tim Key). There are two unfortunate catches, though – the gig’s location is on a remote island that Charles lives on with a small but close-knit community, and Nell has been invited to play too. Charles is an avid fan of the duo’s former band, McGwyer Mortimer, and has organised this gig exclusively for himself so he can reunite the pair.

As one may imagine, this creates a fertile setting for a story on human growth to flourish. The setup for conflict is pretty obvious, as Herb, a man who struggles to move on from the past, is forced to confront himself through this uncomfortable situation. Yet, where the script for finds originality in this otherwise overdone premise is in the character dynamics. Charles is a very peculiar individual, one whose winning the lottery twice is the least weird thing about him. With bizarre habits – such as playing swing ball by himself – and a large empty house decorated with memorabilia, his witticisms and aloof personality regularly test Herb’s patience, even without Nell’s presence serving as a constant reminder of his disappointing past.

These unusual dynamics are often humorous, with Tim Key giving a particularly giddy performance. The man has long embraced his mischievous persona and capacity for strangeness – who can forget his appearance on Taskmaster, where he showed up to the first episode with a reindeer skull? But Key’s performance also captures the hidden vulnerabilities of the character, his chatterbox attitude quickly disappearing once he thinks he’s offended someone or whenever he’s in a room with shopkeeper Amanda (Sian Clifford), of whom he has an obvious crush on. Much like Herb, he’s a man who wants validation and acceptance, but, following a personal tragedy, is more comfortable in his societal isolation than Herb, making the two men compelling foils to each other. Basden captures Herb’s frustrations and wrestling with desire with an astute sense of humanity, with Carey Mulligan’s brief but significant appearance in the film underscoring the demons that both men must overcome during the story.

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Director John Griffiths, alongside Basden and Key, who also co-wrote the script, based their feature on a short film from nearly two decades ago. The increased ambition is evident within the craft while also maintaining that same sense of sincerity. Wide overhead shots capture the remoteness and beauty of the island in astonishingly colourful detail, its separation from previous lives on the mainland forcing the characters to confront their fears, but also giving them the space necessary to do so. There’s an inherent sense of Britishness to the comedy, as it takes advantage of several quick-witted conversations and sight gags to deliver its laughter, one of the most prominent jokes being when Herb asks for change for a £50 note and has to subsequently drag a bag of 20p pieces with him. It’s all breezy and good-natured, but it never obfuscates the hidden pathos of the story. The Ballad of Wallis Island is enamoured with its characters and celebrates their growth, all to the tune of Basden’s sensuous songs and Adem Ilhan’s gentle score.

With all this said, it’s a film that’s easy to predict. Its story plays it in a formulaic fashion, the developments of romantic conflict and eventual misunderstandings being apparent from a mile away. There’s not much in the way of surprises when it comes to the narrative or intended themes. However, when a film embraces its ideas with this much joviality, it’s easy to dismiss the more mechanical elements of the storytelling and just enjoy the ride for what it is.

Sometimes in life, one just needs an accessible feel-good film instead of something revolutionary. On that front, The Ballad of Wallis Island certainly delivers. An amusing, picturesque, and ultimately tender feature on conquering loneliness and pride, this is a picture that’ll capture the hearts of many who view its amiable narrative and outlandish performances.