Quartet

Hey guys, Dustin Hoffman directed a movie! Quartet has Hoffman lending his idiosyncratic touch to a story about some lovely, aged musicians being all old together. This light, ensemble comedy finds notable thespians Maggie Smith, Billy Connolly and Tom Courtenay as former opera singers and residents of a retirement home for gifted musicians. When financial difficulties plague their home, the group set upon the task of getting their Verdi-singing band back together for one last great performance. Dramatic tension intercedes occasionally from Courtenay and Smith's embittered past marriage, as well as the general mucky-muckness of being old. Based on the British play by Ronald Harwood, Quartet's roles are well-acted and its direction fine, but rarely does any spark of life jump from the screen. Like Connolly's seasoned lothario, it ambles along charmingly enough but never really scores. —Jacob Boon