The Ballad of Wallis Island (2025)

The Ballad of Wallis Island Sings a Triumphant Song of Cathartic Grace

Musical superstar Herb McGwyer (Tom Basden) is being handsomely paid to give an exclusive concert on the isolated shores of Wallis Island. What he does not know is that this small, intimate gig is for an audience of one, eccentric millionaire Charles (Tim Key). Even more surprising is who this kindly schlub has contracted to join him on stage: former partner Nell Mortimer (Carey Mulligan), whom he hasn’t seen (let alone performed with) in almost a decade.

Loosely based on their 2007 BAFTA-nominated short film The One and Only Herb McGwyer Plays Wallis Island, Basden, Key, and director James Griffiths reunite for the charming comedy-drama The Ballad of Wallis Island. This is an adorable trifle that brought happy tears to my eyes, put a rhythmical bounce to my step, and filled me with an overwhelmingly euphoric sensation of unfiltered joy. While hardly groundbreaking or revelatory, this divine picture is a blissful reminder that there’s nothing better than a simple story told with grace and subtlety that revolves around memorable characters and isn’t afraid to wear its heart on its sleeve.

Basden and Key have worked together for over two decades, so it isn’t shocking that their on-screen chemistry is off the charts. They play off one another with confident ease. From the first second Herb falls into the ocean and literally into the arms of his talkative employer Charles, to a climactic departure where universal truths have been restored and important life lessons have been relearned, there’s nothing inauthentic about what either actor is doing here. They showcase a selfless give and take that allows both to shine with equal luminance. There are moments between them I’ll be rhapsodically treasuring for quite some time.

But as great as their performances are, it is their writing that deserves the biggest cheer. Basden and Key have taken the simple, straightforward premise of their short and expanded it with grace and nuance. The inclusion of Nell works magnificently. Better, it does so in ways that don’t follow typical musical let’s-put-on-a-show clichés. Nell has agency. She has complexity. She refuses to be a cathartic prop for her former bandmate to utilize for his own emotional renewal. I found all of this and more delightfully unexpected.

Mulligan shines. While this is a small role, the award-winning actor makes the most of every second of her screen time. She and Basden are superb together, manifesting an aura of creative symmetry that makes the idea that they were once a massively successful British folk-pop sensation entirely plausible. But Mulligan digs deeper than that. She quietly takes in everything that’s happening. I could see the wheels continually turning behind Nell’s eyes the instant she set foot on Wallis Island. It’s a lovely performance.

Nell’s current husband, Portland, Oregon birdwatching enthusiast Michael (Akemnji Ndifornyen), unfortunately does not get a lot to do, but thankfully Basden and Key do give the character a handful of solid one-liners and an especially effective beat near the end where he gets to face down Herb one-and-one for the only time. There’s also a silly yet still effective subplot concerning the island’s lone shopkeeper, single mother Amanda (Sian Clifford). While some of the jokes concerning her cluelessness to the broader world sadly fall flat (especially one involving Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups), others regarding Charles and his continual bulk purchasing of tennis balls decidedly do not.

Yet the core dynamic is the one involving exactly why Charles has brought Herb to the island to perform. His reasons for doing so may be born from personal tragedy, but that does not mean they still are not built upon an unbreakable foundation of eternal love. His affinity for the music of McGwyer Mortimer isn’t some giddy fanboy nostalgia that his financial largess has allowed him to manifest into reality just for the heck of it. No. Charles’ connection to the pair’s songbook runs deeper than that. By bringing them to the island to perform, he not only gets to give one final gift to the person who meant the most to him in his life, but he also opens a door to future romantic possibilities that he thought had been forever closed five years prior.

Right now, at this moment, being reminded that it’s okay to feel a moment of happiness, to find solace in a favorite song or album, to smile in the face of embarrassment, all of that and more is needed more than ever. Tragedy does not have to last forever. Inspiration can blossom in the most mundane and unforeseen places. Love can be found and lasting connections can be made even in a world drowning in chaos and indecision. This is the song that The Ballad of Wallis Island triumphantly sings. It’s one worth playing on repeat.

Film Rating: 3½ (out of 4)