Victoria and Abdul
A young Indian clerk Abdul Karim becomes a friend of the Queen Victoria, though their friendship is likely to be called unattractive.
7 August 1958, Ware, Hertfordshire, England, UK
1947, Northamptonshire, England, UK
1963, Lambeth, London, England, UK
26 July 1968, Camden Town, London, England, UK
1 June 1988, Northern Ireland, UK
1 January 1941, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, England, UK
1967, Wallsend, Tyne and Wear, England, UK
7 February 1962, Aden, Yemen
1964, Scotland, UK
November 04, 2017
Packaged tightly with endearing charm and soul-gratifying beauty, this British drama eschews all aristocratic stuffiness, favoring humor and earned poignancy.October 29, 2017
Awareness is where Frears balances both humour and drama because it's the core of the story, emotionally and politically. We can laugh at the politesse disguising denial, at the court's love of the crusty status quo, but Abdul is the emissary of change.October 26, 2017
Victoria's story has been told pretty thoroughly, and this was probably Abdul's only shot on the big screen. It's such a shame they wasted it.November 08, 2017
[STephen Frears] seems to have run out of ideas, despite Dench's riveting turn as Queen Victoria, Empress of India.September 29, 2017
This film - which is, we're told, "based on real events - mostly" - tells of how the elderly queen got her groove back, so to speak.November 09, 2017
While Dench's performance is convincing, there is a distinct lack of chemistry between the pair.September 29, 2017
It's up to historians to assess how accurate this funny, charming film is to the details of Queen Victoria's last years, but its use of poetic license is impeccable.September 29, 2017
The film's attempt to portray the Queen as more politically enlightened than her courtiers is kindly but unconvincing, and many of the actors bark and behave as if participating in a spoof.November 07, 2017
... the sumptuous (or bombastic) melodrama is not lacking: Victoria & Abdul recreates in its own majesty... falling into the sins of Orientalism. [Full review in Spanish]September 29, 2017
Victoria & Abdul is worth seeing for Dench's magisterial performance and for Frears's light but sure directorial touch. Just don't mistake it for actual history.September 29, 2017
It's a neatly executed lark but one that eventually becomes ensnared in the colonialism it seeks to expose.October 13, 2017
Victoria & Abdul may capture the ugly side of Britain's colonial past, but its demeaning portrait of Abdul reinforces the Orientalism it purports to lampoon.