In his 1999 Golden Globe acceptance speech for the film Little Voice Michael Caine declared that he had made “a lot of crap” for “a lot of money” so that he could afford to sit back and choose the good roles. His performance as retired magician Clarence in John Crowley’s 1980’s-set drama Is Anybody There can certainly be described as one of those ‘good roles’, very good in fact.
It's easy to forget you’re watching Hollywood royalty when you see Caine appear on screen unshaven and scruffily dressed. Living in an old converted ice-cream van, his character Clarence arrives at an old people’s home to ride out the remainder of his existence in peace. He’s bitter, ruing the loss of an old love and angry at not being able to turn the clock back to have his time again. Distancing himself from the other residents, he’s clearly a loner: old but unhappy at having to accept it.
Michael Caine as Retired Magician Strikes Unlikely Partnership with Young Bill Milner
Caine is in good company with youngster Bill Milner (whom we first saw in Son of Rambow) putting in a fine performance as Edward, the son of the home’s owners. He’s an oddball 11-year-old, growing up in an adult world. Much to his parent’s concern, he has a strange fixation with death and the afterlife. Obsessed with making contact with the other side, he spends his time with an audio recorder eagerly trying to pick up messages from the deceased.
As a retired magician Clarence is the subject of intrigue from Edward, but Clarence isn’t too keen on spending his time with an 11 year old and is at first hostile towards Edward’s pestering. It’s not until after a failed suicide attempt that Clarence and Edward begin to spark off an unconventional friendship. Both characters help each other through difficult times in their lives. Clarence is given the opportunity to rekindle his talent performing magic and in turn takes Edward under his wing, teaching him the tricks of being a magician and distracting him from the difficulties surrounding his parents flailing marriage. As Caine’s character tells the youngster to “Reach out and make contact with the living, kid”, giving Edward a real purpose to his life and a means to become popular amongst his school friends.
Is Anybody There is a fantastic tale of friendship and personal loss. It’s a touching story, both sad and amusing in equal measure. It’s testament to the two leading actors’ ability to hold the screen, both creating a convincing on screen friendship which, for Milner, belies his 11 year old relative inexperience and for Caine just emphasises what a screen legend he is.
Is Anybody There Contains Some Veteran British Actors
As with many a good drama, there is sufficient light relief from the supporting cast that you never feel like you’re watching a film that’s gritty and tough viewing. The characters on the periphery just help to emphasise what a crazy world young Edward is growing up in. David Morrissey sporting an 80’s mullet is superb as Edward’s confused father. Suffering a mid-life crisis he is convinced he can start a whirlwind relationship with 18 year old employee Tanya (Linzey Cocker), much to her obvious surprise when he confesses his thoughts to her in probably the most inappropriate situation possible – over the body of one of the home’s recently deceased old dears.
There are some notable cameos from the geriatric inhabitants of Edward’s home too. It's easy to wonder if it is in fact a nursing home for most of Britain’s elderly screen legends. Leslie Phillips is the stand out performer, reverting to type as the sleazy Reg, who likes a drop of the hard stuff and has a propensity toward a dirty joke or two. Former Porridge actor Peter Vaughan plays the shell shocked war veteran Bob, who is the subject of the film’s main turning point, unfortunately losing a finger in a magic trick that tragically goes wrong during Clarence’s show for Edward’s 12th birthday party. Eagle eyed viewers may also spot Thelma Barlow (Coronation Street’s Mavis) playing Edna and TV veteran Elizabeth Spriggs as Prudence.
John Crowley’s Drama Is Anybody There is Well Worth a Watch
If there is any criticism of Is Anybody There? it’s that it could benefit from being slightly longer. There are some touching scenes between Michael Caine and his counterpart Bill Milner, particularly when Edward sneaks Clarence out of the home to take him to a graveyard where he shows him a tombstone bearing the same name as Clarence’s lost love. It’s at this point that the two characters really begin to bond and it would have been nice to see how their friendship developed throughout Clarence’s depleting health. However, this is only a mild criticism of a story that, although we’ve been here before when talking about films where a child helps bring out the better side of an adult (About A Boy being the most recent example), it is still a fine piece of cinema, worth seeing for the two fine leading performances if anything.
See the trailer for Is Anybody There? on YouTube.
Verdict: 4/5
Running time: 95 minutes
Rating: PG
Cast: Michael Caine, Bill Milner, David Morrissey, Anne-Marie Duff, Leslie Phillips, Thelma Barlow
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