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The Duke hits U.K. theaters on Feb. 25, 2022.
Every good caper starts with an eccentric oddball, and The Duke is no different. Meet Kempton Bunton (Jim Broadbent), a 57-year-old cab driver who, in 1961, just might have pulled off the wackiest art theft in history. Based on a true story, Bunton allegedly broke into the National Gallery in London, pilfered Francisco Goya’s Portrait of the Duke of Wellington, then hoofed it back to his home in Newcastle, where he hid the painting from his wife in the back of a wardrobe… all while using it to blackmail the British government into providing free TV licences for pensioners.
If that sounds far-fetched, it’s because it really is.
But the truth is often stranger than fiction, and in this case, Bunton’s absurd true-crime tale has all the hallmarks of a classic Ealing comedy. The Duke’s off-kilter laughs and Broadbent’s impeccable comic timing adds up to a hilarious romp through one of the most audacious art thefts the world has ever seen – all (apparently) orchestrated by an ageing northern cabbie.
Bunton’s story may not add up, but it certainly lives up to his comically eccentric name.
The Duke begins with a glimpse of the resulting court case, with Broadbent in full swing as he makes a comic spectacle from the dock. But if you thought this was going to be a courtroom dramedy, you’d be mistaken. Bunton’s story unfolds with quaint comic charm as we take a walk in his shoes through 1960s Newcastle, and we find out there’s far more to him than meets the eye. He’s incredibly well-read, and a soapbox revolutionary who wants to make a difference. After all,that’s all his long-suffering wife, Dorothy (Helen Mirren), ever hears about.
The chemistry between Broadbent and Mirren is absolutely blinding as the pair pulls off some of the best performances of their careers. There’s an unabashed hopefulness about Bunton which Broadbent plays in earnest, while Mirren’s quick-tempered wife bounces off his working-class charm. She’s every bit as witty as Broadbent, too, reining him in when Bunton veers too close to calamity.
Well, almost. After spotting the sale of the Portrait of the Duke of Wellington on TV, he’s about to go a bit too far.
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The “heist,” if you can call it that, is hilarious in its simplicity, made even more so by the comments of police chief Sir Joseph Simpson (Charles Edwards), who vastly overestimates the degree of criminal he’s dealing with. The fast-paced, Ocean’s Eleven-style cut is masterfully done by director Roger Michell, but the thief is certainly no professional. He’s more Feathers McGraw than The Pink Panther’s Phantom. And when the police later suggest that he’s a “trained commando,” it’s enough to make Bunton choke on his cuppa.
In fact, Michell doesn’t shy away from the almost slapstick nature of this weird caper, with an off-beat jazz score from George Fenton that channels some of the greatest heist movies in cinema history with a dash of The Pink Panther. It’s clear that both actors and filmmakers alike had a lot of fun with The Duke, as both performances and direction are playful, light-hearted, and full of old-school charm. Throw in a dash of stock footage to ground the drama in reality (while giving it an old cinema newsreel feel) and it adds up to a charming, hilarious, and over-the-top caper that will keep you laughing the whole way through.
Broadbent obviously steals the show with his quixotic take on Kempton Bunton, regaling the judge and jury with quips as he’s being examined by the prosecution. Matthew Goode makes an unexpectedly brilliant appearance, too, as Bunton’s educated (but sympathetic) defence barrister.
The Duke is unashamedly old-fashioned, channelling the best of British comedy in a true-crime caper that could easily have been a Peter Sellers yarn. But the real fun occurs when Bunton’s scheme unravels – a plot that barely made any sense in the first place. A touch of social commentary only adds to the film, elevating The Duke from an admittedly brilliant farce to a sensitive examination of what was wrong with 1960s Britain.
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Kempton Bunton wanted to make a difference. Some might call him a working-class hero, a man of the people, while others will think he was a complete loon. Either way, there was no one quite like him. The Duke reminds of that, as well as how brilliant a good old-fashioned caper can be.