The Ballad of Wallis Island: A Charmer Through and Through

In 2007, British Comedians Tim Key and Tom Basden collaborated with director James Griffiths on the short film, “The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island.” The short follows a jaded and burnt-out musician Herb McGwyer (Basden) visiting Wallis Island to perform a show for the eccentric and awkward Charles (Key). The short is amusing and charming featuring good performances and some fun banter between the two leads. Their chemistry being the greatest achievement of the short. Fifteen years later, the same team return to Wallis Island for a feature adaptation of the short titled, The Ballad of Wallis Island. This feature adaptation sees Key and Basden reprise their roles, though this time given more nuance and depth.

Instead of being a recovered party boy, Charles is a lonely and awkward superfan of McGwyer’s former band, McGwyer and Mortimer, inviting he and his former partner in music and life, to Wallis Island to perform an intimate show. Through the Island and prospective performance, the two former bandmates find themselves positioned where they once were in the past, reckoning with the past in pursuit of a fulfilling future. Now fifteen years later, Key and Basden return to these characters with a more refined dramatic presence.

The off-putting arrogance of McGwyer is played off of and deconstructed through his growing relationship with Charles, the antithesis to his arrogance and jaded emotional construction. While the reintroduction of Nell Mortimer (Mulligan) into his life, Herb found himself at an impasse, forcing the artist to reckon with the direction his career has taken following their split. The film thrives off the emotional interplay between the characters, and through the casting of Mulligan, it finds an excellent conduit for emotional vulnerability. In the end, the film’s champion is Key’s performance as the awkward Charles and its music. His performance and characterization of Charles isn’t initially too different from the source material, featuring several of Herb and Charles interactions carrier over from the original short film.

As the film progresses however, the emotional repression for the service of hospitality shines through Key’s joyous yet sad performance, bringing an awkwardness and warmth that can only come from true sadness. Additionally, its music is a welcome treat, with Basden and Mulligan themselves performing. The soundtrack is indicative of the indie-folk music that inspired Herb and Nell while offering audiences an added layer of insight into a past they are only given mere glances into. It also provides further insight into the emotional reality of the story and characters themselves made ever-present through their raw vocal performances and beautiful harmonies.

Here, Griffiths opts for simplicity in his direction, zeroing in on the intimacy of the island and home of Charles. The presentation of the island is one which matches the characters; rainy yet beautiful, glum yet so full of life. The cinematography reflects this in how the film is shot in a way that extenuates the isolation of the setting. Wallis Island is home to a small community, cut off from the excess of modern life, a trait which Griffith further inhabits, focusing on its characters and beautiful Welsh land. The rugged and rocky cliffside parallels the film’s own characters, as their relationship progresses through their isolation on the island.

The Ballad of Wallis Island delivers a sweet story that, while conventional in structure and tone, its charm finds a way to shine throughout, largely due to Tim Key’s performance and the films’ well written and performed folk music. A charmer through and through, it is bound to put smiles on faces as it satisfies the narrative conventions you may expect.

still courtesy of Focus Features

If you liked this, please read our other reviews here and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter or Instagram or like us on Facebook.

Brad Simon

letterboxd.com/bradsimmon213/