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Film review: Dean Spanley

Posted by Judy Darley
December 23, 2008
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Peter O'Toole as Fisk Senior

Peter O

This is an exquisitely understated film, where the Edwardian fascination with theories of ‘transmigration of the soul’ is used to help heal the relationship between a father and son.

Peter O’Toole is magnificent as the cantankerous Fisk Senior, steadfastly refusing to mourn the loss of his younger son during the Boer War.

His son, Fisk Junior (Jeremy Northam), develops a strange friendship with Dean Spanley (Sam Neil), who, when fed a certain type of wine, is prone to reminiscing about his past life as a dog. These peculiar revelations help Fisk Senior to grieve his loss at last.

It sounds bonkers, but deft handling of Lord Dunsany’s classic novel makes this one of the most delicately crafted films of 2008. Dialogue is spare, and each word seems to have been chosen with care, while Peter O’Toole’s expressive face portrays more than a sentence ever could.

The majority of the adjectives seems to have been saved for Dean Spanley, who provides startlingly vivid evocative insights into the life of a dog.

All in all, a phenomenal adaptation that’s likely to lead to a resurgence of interest in Lord Dunsany’s literary work.

Director Toa Fraser

Novelist Lord Dunsany

Starring Peter O’Toole, Jeremy Northam, Sam Neil, Bryan Brown, Judy Parfitt

Currently showing at Watershed, Bristol, and cinemas nationwide


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