A blackly-comic film centred around three elderly actors, and the infatuation that Maurice (played by Peter O'Toole) develops for a young woman.

It's such a treat to see a film focussing on older characters, and with such incredible actors, it becomes a privilege. For example, there are some wonderful scenes in which O'Toole, Leslie Phillips and Richard Griffiths sit in a cafe and chat. It's touching, funny, at times gloriously foul-mouthed, and I could watch an entire film in which that's all they do.

None of the characters are stereotypes, and none are straightforwardly likeable, but you still end up caring a great deal about what happens to them. It's very sad in places, but also life-affirming in others. For…

I first watched this when it came out, with a group of people, and I found it quite a hard watch.

I didn't watch it again, despite my love for O'Toole.

Until tonight.

On second viewing I found this much sweeter, much funnier and much easier to relate too.

And of course, O'Toole is just magnificent, as always. Jodie Whittaker, despite on the surface potentially having a largely unlikeable role, plays her part very well (as ever) and doesn't alienate the viewer. It's saddening to think that her initial behaviour is how young people act with older people/people from a different 'culture', as if they've just beamed down from another planet. I'm far far closer to Whittaker in age than…

An ageing actor with a well-deserved reputation as a womaniser falls in love with a manipulative, unlikeable young woman. I liked the performances of Peter O'Toole, Leslie Phillips and Richard Griffiths, who were great together, whilst the 'relationship' between O'Toole and Jodie Whittaker was very thought-provoking. My only gripe with the film was (without giving anything away) their last scenes together - those who have seen the film will know what I am referring to.
Teenagers who are appalled by the idea of an old man falling in love with someone their own age (I've read such comments) ought to wonder what it would be like to be considered undesirable by the world, but to still feel the same as…

I first watched this when it came out, with a group of people, and I found it quite a hard watch.

I didn't watch it again, despite my love for O'Toole.

Until tonight.

On second viewing I found this much sweeter, much funnier and much easier to relate too.

And of course, O'Toole is just magnificent, as always. Jodie Whittaker, despite on the surface potentially having a largely unlikeable role, plays her part very well (as ever) and doesn't alienate the viewer. It's saddening to think that her initial behaviour is how young people act with older people/people from a different 'culture', as if they've just beamed down from another planet. I'm far far closer to Whittaker in age than…

An ageing actor with a well-deserved reputation as a womaniser falls in love with a manipulative, unlikeable young woman. I liked the performances of Peter O'Toole, Leslie Phillips and Richard Griffiths, who were great together, whilst the 'relationship' between O'Toole and Jodie Whittaker was very thought-provoking. My only gripe with the film was (without giving anything away) their last scenes together - those who have seen the film will know what I am referring to.
Teenagers who are appalled by the idea of an old man falling in love with someone their own age (I've read such comments) ought to wonder what it would be like to be considered undesirable by the world, but to still feel the same as…

Venus doesn't do anything new for the subgenre of small British character dramas it inhabits, but it does all of the old stuff well, anchored by wonderful performances from Peter O'Toole and Jodie Whittaker. Leslie Phillips and Vanessa Redgrave provide solid support whenever they pop up, but Roger Michell's film is ultimately all about O'Toole and Whittaker and that's where it shines brightest.

Michell, coming off the old-age character drama The Mother and the character-based thriller Enduring Love, chose again to work with writer Hanif Kureishi (who wrote The Mother) to tell the story of a late age actor who experiences vigor once again when he meets a young, abrasive girl who is staying with his friend. Michell has never…