Dame Maggie Smith stars as the delightfully bizarre “Lady in the Van” in this can’t-miss English gem based on the acclaimed play by THE HISTORY BOYS scribe Alan Bennett.
“Can anyone resist Maggie Smith? Not bloody likely!”
– Jeff Simon, The Buffalo News
“It’s Smith’s eccentric oldster who is the film’s driving force, and the 80-year-old actress doesn’t disappoint. Not surprisingly, she fully exploits the humor in her character’s bizarreness.”
– Frank Scheck, Hollywood Reporter
“A delicately written, boisterously performed movie about the difficult people who dare us to care about them.”
– Rebecca Keegan, Los Angeles Times
“She is hard to like, and that’s good.”
– Stephen Holden, New York Times
“It’s about the boundless talents of Maggie Smith, sometimes chewing up the screen, sometimes saying volumes simply by sitting very, very still, with a perfectly perfect expression on her face.”
– Richard Roeper, Chicago Sun-Times
Alan Bennett’s story is based on the true story of Miss Shepherd (played by a magnificent Maggie Smith), a woman of uncertain origins who “temporarily” parked her van in Bennett’s London driveway and proceeded to live there for 15 years.
What begins as a begrudged favor becomes a relationship that will change both their lives. Filmed on the street and in the house where Bennett and Miss Shepherd lived all those years, acclaimed director Nicholas Hytner reunites with iconic writer Alan Bennett (The Madness of King George, The History Boys) to bring this rare and touching portrait to the screen. (C) Sony Pictures Classics
