The Ballad of Wallis Island

There are songs sung sweetly, insults hurled then retracted, and a balm of kindness in every frame that emerges from somewhere between Basden’s hangdog sensitivities and Key’s cherubic wit.

What you also don’t anticipate is how poignant it all gets — a melancholy farce with an oddly pure soul.

Key and Basden avoid turning their film into a nostalgic pat on the back for smug millennials convinced they lived through artistically superior times -- the sense of loss here is strictly personal.

Basden does excellent work as a character, in contrast, whose face does the talking: a spiky presence, all low cut T-shirts, wounded ego and rounded shoulders. It’s a perfect performance both as an actor and, when the songs come along, as a musician.

Mulligan brings heart to Basden’s wistful folk compositions, and Key babbles amiably, as this crowd-pleaser salutes the redemptive power of a singsong.

It may be a tad uneven and repetitive in places but it’s also enjoyably sweet and silly.

a humane comedy, a richly observed character study that plays into comic types while also revealing their souls

Come for the absurd comedy, stay for the emotional punch that may leave you staring into space on the couch as the credits roll.

[The filmmakers] refuse to cut corners or soften edges. These men must be forced to see the error of their way, not to teach the other a lesson, but to realize where they went wrong themselves.

The Ballad of Wallis Island is a lovely little film.