This is an excellent film: 'Happiness' meets 'East is East'. The humour comes not from the fact that the setting is a jewish old folks home, because they are old people like old people anywhere, but from the fact that these particular characters talk about what they really think and feel in a wonderfully direct way.
Ron Moody is predictably moving as Izzie Goldberg, the grandfather who finds his memories of former glory-days unbearable now that he is incontinent and looking forward to a painful death. The minor comic characters are marvellous: especially the nurse who bizarrely deprives the old folks of their daily milk ration.
For me the best performance comes from the doctor, played by John Cunningham. His lines, some of the best in this superb script, are performed with cut-glass comic delivery. And that deadpan delivery is an absolute must for this genre. The story may be tragic but the delivery achieves the almost painful comic undertone that distinguishes dark arthouse comedy from mainstream. It's a must-see!
