"The Thursday Murder Club" just dropped on NetFlix. It stars Helen Mirren, Ben Kingsley, Pierce Brosnann and Celia Imrie The movie is based on a Richard Osman popular book series. Five books have been published (with the most recent one out on September 1st). The screenplay is by Katy Brand and Suzanne Heathcote. The show is directed by Chris Columbus (best known for directing the "Home Alone" movies, "Mrs Doubtfire" and "Adventures in Babysitting" amongst others).
The basic premise is a group of residents in a British retirement community (I dont want to say it a "nursing home" since this group is far too active to be in a nursing home) who solve cold cases. They are Elizabeth (who hints at her former profession), Joyce (a retired nurse), Ibrahim (a retired psychiatrist) and Ron (a retired union leader).
When we meet the group, they're working on a cold case from 1973. Soon, current murders start to pile up. There's Tony Curran (who is a mobster type character). He owns the upscale retirement home they live in. It's called Cooper's Chase. It's a converted castle. I personally would love to live there. His partner (played by David Tennant) plans to sell throw out the residents and turn the place into high end apartments. The group works together to solve not only this case but the older one as well. They are a great team because they all have their individual skill sets. ,
On RottenTomatoes, the show is currently at a 76% (certified fresh) by critics and a 54% by audiences. Looks like most critics and a good part of audiences enjoyed the show. I will say though, if you're a die hard book fan, you might not enjoy it as much. It seems the first book was watered down considerably to make it into a two hour movie.
Grade: 4 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). I loved these quirky and delightful characters. I hope there's enough viewership to warrant more movies. If you're looking for a hardcore mystery, this is not for you. This is a feel good movie... and the world needs a lot more of them these days.
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Photo Credits: https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/the-thursday-murder-club-review-helen-mirren-netflix-1236347291/
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