The spiritual and life lessons at this film’s heart are not especially nuanced, but The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry – director Hettie Macdonald’s (Normal People) second feature, based on Rachel Joyce’s script from her own novel – is still a rewarding watch. Keep the Kleenex handy.
Veteran actors Jim Broadbent and Penelope Wilton play aging British couple Harold and Maureen Fry, who have very little left to say to each other and even less to do each day. When Harold receives a note in the mail from an old colleague, Queenie, saying goodbye since she has been moved to hospice, something inside him shifts.
Next thing we know, Harold is embarking on an unplanned walk across the British countryside to Queenie’s bedside, some 500 miles away. He’s convinced he might save her life with this walk. When a journalist hears about his story, Harold becomes front-page news and his determination inspires others, who begin following him like acolytes.
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