SOMETIMES ALWAYS NEVER – Review

Oh, the ups and downs of family life with its joyous highs and tragic lows can make a most surprising emotional journey, particularly at the movies. And when three generations try to live under one roof (something very common over the past few months), well anything is bound to happen. In this tale past disappointments erupt into verbal warfare as a looming tragedy begins to chip away at the possibility of a mutual truce. Throw in the British tradition of burying one’s feelings and you’ve got the foundation of a gripping drama. Or a whimsical comedy. Or both. It helps that the center of this “dramedy” is not the typical film avuncular “Grampa”, but an eccentric and aloof “grifter”. Ah, but he’s still an offbeat charmer thanks to the casting of a terrific character actor. And he does dole out a few nuggets of real wisdom, from which springs the title, SOMETIMES ALWAYS NEVER.

We’re introduced to Alan (Bill Nighy) as he tries to balance his cellphone and umbrella as she strolls along the seashore. He’s talking to his youngest son, Peter (Sam Riley) to plan a rendezvous, They’re going to meet, pile into one of their vehicles, and make the long drive to a little town’s office of the coroner. Yeesh! Seems a body has turned up, and they need to find out if it’s the longtime missing eldest son Michael. But the official is shared with another small town, so the two just miss him. Peter, who wants to spend as little time with his pop as possible, wants to go back home and return the next day. Ah, but Alan thought ahead and reserved rooms at a local inn. In its pub, they meet a long-married couple, Arthur (Tim McInnery) and Margaret (Jenny Agutter). At Alan’s prodding, they engage in a game of Scrabble. This annoys Peter because as a child they always got the cheaper “knock-off version” Scribble with flimsy “punch-out” cardboard tiles. He retires after a round, but the game continues with Arthur making a wager with Alan. During a game break, Margaret tells Alan that they too are there to “ID” the body. This doesn’t stop Alan from trouncing them in the game ( he’s a Scrabble hustler). This makes the nest day at the morgue even more awkward, though the corpse is not either party’s relation. Father and son head home, but Alan is restless in the office of his failing men’s clothing store. After locking up he arrives at Peter’s doorstep, to his dismay while delighting his wife Sue (Alice Lowe). She invites him to stay but can only offer a bed (part of a “bunk”) in their teenage son Jack’s (Louis Healy) room. When he’s not at school his head is buried in his computer, playing an online multi-user fantasy war game. But while Jack’s away, Alan goes online, saying he’s upgrading the hard drive, but really playing Scrabble. One of the players who goes by the alias “Skinny Thesaurus” attracts Alan’s attention. He tells Peter that this must be Michael attempting to contact him. As Peter dismisses him and returns to work, Alan leaves, determined to track down this “word master”. Angry, but fearing for his dad, Peter searches for Alan, hoping that he can bring him back to reality before he’s another victim of the “dark web”.

The role of family patriarch serves as a showcase for the dry acerbic wit and deliciously halted line readings of the supremely talented Nighy. A scene-stealer in his far-too-brief role in the recent version of EMMA., Nighy runs with the role of Alan, a fella’ that’s surprisingly difficult to embrace and makes the film his own inspired character study. While with son Peter, Nighy gives Alan a passive-aggressive tone, condescending one moment, then defensive of their shared history (“We did with what we had”). He keeps much of that vibe when he spots a “mark” in the stuffy Arthur. He later asserts himself as he “invades” Peter’s home/sanctuary and resumes his mission (finding Michael) with a fanatical zeal. But he also sees this time as a chance to point his grandson in the “right direction” (the title refers to his rule about the front three buttons on a suit coat or jacket). As the story’s main focus, Nighy truly “delivers the goods”. Plus he’s got a great sparring partner in Riley (maybe best known as the sidekick human/raven in the Maleficent flicks) who has a terrific “slow burn’ as he deals with his ever-frustrating father. While in pop’s company every “old wound” begins to open up. During a flashback montage of him as a child being continuously disappointed at birthdays and holidays (“I couldn’t get ‘Action-Man’, so it was ‘Action-Joe’! He didn’t have the kung-fu grip!”). Riley expresses Peter’s sadness through his half-lidded eyes and slouching posture. But when Alan slowly tries to “take over” his home, Peter stands his ground. Caught in the middle is the bubbly Lowe as the peacemaking Sue who often stumbles while calming them and trying not to lose her teenage son, even “stalking” him near the bus stop to his school (where he hopes to connect with a lovely classmate). Healy as son Jack is often the typical surly, close-mouthed movie teen, but being a “flatmate’ to his Gran’dad seems to open him up. leaving the virtual world and rejoining his folks in the real one. Aside from the family, McInnerny scores some big laughs as the oafish patsy Arthur, while Agutter exudes a sultry frisky charm as the randy Margaret (can AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON really be nearly 40).

Carl Hunter makes a confident debut as a feature film director after many TV credits. He keeps the pace bouncy, even as the first act set around the morgue threatens to become morbid. With the story divided up in chapters headed by a dictionary definition (the Scrabble connection) and the use of kids’ book style limited animation interludes, the film almost veers into the sickeningly precious, but Hunter succeeds in this tricky “balancing act”. It’s whimsical without being cloyingly cute. Credit must go to veteran screen scribe Frank Cottrell Bryce who provides an expert “roadmap” for this family journey. He adds an air of mystery and suspense to the pathos and comedy, making us fear for Alan’s safety as he becomes more obsessed with his “quest”. Plus the UK locales, from York to Liverpool, are expertly used (especially the lonely seaside in the first few minutes). For fans for (honest) family films and especially admirers of the talented Mr. Nighy, SOMETIMES ALWAYS NEVER is just as compelling and entertaining as any game of Scrabble, or even Scribble. As they say in the film, “It’s a Bingo!”.

Three and a Half Out of Four

SOMETIMES ALWAYS NEVER is available as a Video On Demand through most cable and satellite systems, along with most streaming apps and platforms.