The Duke (2021)

Kempton Bunton is unafraid of going up against the powers that be. His crusade of choice is opposition to the license that is required for anyone with a television. His stance is that veterans and pensioners should not have to bear this cost since TV helps to keep people plugged into society. So, Bunton's a good guy but a constant source of exasperation for his wife as his reluctance to keep his head down loses him job after job. The story here involves an expensive Goya painting acquired by the National Gallery and then stolen from it. And, of course, Kempton's involved.

It's not a bad story, but it's more suited to a novella or long-form magazine article than a movie. It's just not big or deep or funny or nail-biting enough to fill the screen. I enjoyed the characters more than I enjoyed the telling.

B-