Buckle up for some bawdy banter
Then Came You (M, 97 mins) Directed by Adriana Trigiani Reviewed by James Croot ★★★
Those expecting something like this generation’s Shirley Valentine, Under the Tuscan Sun or Nights in Rodanthe are in for a shock.
Because while this mature-audience-oriented tale contains picture-postcard locations and lifelessons about starting again and moving on, it’s also filled with saucy situations and bawdy humour that will come as either a shock or a welcome surprise, depending on your sensibilities.
A year on from her hardwarestore-owning husband Fred’s death and Annabelle Wilson (former US daytime chat show host Kathie Lee Gifford) has finally decided it’s time to make new memories.
Self-described as a ‘‘blonde, 5ft 6 woman of a certain age who is completely ordinary in every way’’, she decides to begin her movieinspired tour of 20 countries with nine days at Awld’s Inn in rural Scotland.
Things get off to a bad start though, when the property’s eccentric owner Howard (Craig Ferguson, who used to have his own late-night talk show) not only instantly rubs Annabelle up the wrong way with his off-colour jokes, but his car runs out of petrol well short of the grounds.
It’s also quickly clear that the Inn has seen better days and the ‘‘Awld’s experience’’ is pretty much delivered by a one-man band.
Not only is the plumbing on its last legs, but the menu is somewhat limited, with Howard offering her a choice of salmon, or haggis.
‘‘Can I get my oatmeal without the vital organs?’’ Annabelle politely inquires, before hurriedly opting for the fish dish.
But even as he chides her for dressing like a shortbread tin, pours cold water on her belief that all Scots love Braveheart and suggests spotted dick for dessert, somehow the pair start to form an unlikely bond.
As you’d expect, there are plenty of revelations, brief resentments and sudden rethinks before the title credits roll. And yet, despite a treacly soundtrack, some very leftfield narrative twists and an awful cameo from Liz Hurley, I left Then Came You feeling uplifted.
That’s thanks largely to the chemistry between the two leads. Gifford, best-known as godmother to Kendall and Kylie Jenner, is a revelation here. She penned the screenplay and delivers a sassy and nuanced performance which belies her Sharknado-sequel-heavy recent CV.
Ferguson is a spirited match, part-misanthrope, part-prankster-in-chief, but imbuing his cheeky character with appropriate depth when the time comes to deal with his backstory. Together, they spark, as trans-Atlantic doubleentendres and flirtation abound.
Former Cosby Show and A Different World writer and producer Adriana Trigiana does her best to corral her leads to keep the story flowing. However, in truth, Then Came You is at its best when she just leaves them to banter, berate and blather.