By Laura BennettTuesday 4 Apr 2023Hope AfternoonsMoviesReading Time: 2 minutes
We don’t always like talking about getting old. After observing what can happen to elderly family members there’s a fear that the latter years of our lives could be quieter, lonelier and more physically challenging than we want them to be.
What’s missed in that narrative about aging, though, is the genuine moments of care that can be exchanged between people and the rich personalities of individuals so easily sidelined from society.
Set in a Yorkshire hospital, Allelujah is about a small geriatric ward that faces closure when the government seeks to streamline medical services and makes cuts. Dr Valentine (Bally Gill) fears what will happen to the patients if their home is taken from them and, through the work of a documentary crew who come to tell the story of the ward, fights to keep “The Beth” open and show the value of each of its occupants.
Released of the 75th anniversary of the UK’s National Health Service (NHS), Allelujah showcases the enduring spirit of the elderly, and also the tenacity of those who care for them with ever diminishing resources. It’s an ode to old age and an insight into the pressures NHS staff face.
At times the two themes seem at odds. Dr Valentine’s tenderness toward the patients is juxtaposed with his exhaustion at being understaffed and the way he berates the British government which makes it unclear who the target audience is: does Allelujah want families to appreciate the elderly more? Or does it want to lash society for its ignorance about the pressures on our health care systems?
The ensemble cast is strong, including figures like Judi Dench and Harry Potter’s David Bradley, but they seem underutilised in a story that could have capitialised on their acting chops. Judi dwells quietly in the background of scenes, barely uttering a sentence until the final act but by that point you’ve already wondered why they haven’t made her more central: was she too expensive, or are they leaning into the films messaging about “elderly gems” being overlooked?
There’s merit to what Allelujah is attempting to do – and at times it lands perfectly – but overall, it feels like a bait-and-switch that uses the nobility of celebrating the elderly to have a go at people who don’t value medical staff.
Allelujah is in cinemas now.