Oliver's Travels
Oliver's Travels is a five-part television serial written by Alan Plater and starring Alan Bates, Sinéad Cusack, Bill Paterson, and Miles Anderson. It first aired in the UK in 1995. Bates plays the titular Oliver, a keen word-game enthusiast and lecturer in comparative religion. After his teaching post is made redundant, he resolves to make use of his new wealth of free time by going to visit his favourite crossword compiler, 'Aristotle', with whom he has corresponded but whom he has never met. When he arrives, however, he finds Aristotle's house has been ransacked and its occupant has departed for parts unknown, and he sets out to discover why.
Insights
Plot Summary
A young, naive Englishman, Oliver, inherits his estranged uncle's dilapidated mansion in the countryside. Expecting a quiet inheritance, he instead finds himself embroiled in the eccentric and often bizarre lives of the mansion's few remaining inhabitants and the secrets it holds. As he navigates the strange household, Oliver grapples with his own identity and the peculiar legacy left to him.
Critical Reception
Oliver's Travels received a largely negative reception from critics, with many finding its plot convoluted and its humor to be weak and unfocused. Audience reception was similarly muted, with the film failing to gain significant traction.
What Reviewers Say
- The film suffers from a lack of clear direction and underdeveloped characters.
- Humor often falls flat, relying on predictable or nonsensical situations.
- Rupert Everett's performance is noted as a highlight, but not enough to save the film.
Google audience: Audience reviews are scarce for this film, but available comments suggest a general disappointment with the movie's disjointed narrative and lack of memorable moments.
Fun Fact
The film was reportedly one of the last projects Rupert Everett worked on before his breakthrough role in 'My Best Friend's Wedding'.
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