Six Minutes to Midnight ★★★

Andy Goddard

Starring Judi Dench, Eddie Izzard, James D'Arcy, Jim Broadbent, Carla Juri, David Schofield

Eddie Izzard and Judi Dench star in this period drama set less than two weeks before World War Two. Izzard joins the Augusta Victoria college in Bexhill-on-Sea as a teacher who soon discovers that the school is host to children of Nazi leaders.

This part fact, part fiction drama is co-written and produced by Izzard and her performance is the stand-out here. There are some nice moments with interesting twists and turns that are akin to TV dramas gone by. A chase scene here and espionage moments there are a welcome addition and the middle third does fly by. The cinematography is another stand out too with a great look and feel to proceedings.

What the film is missing are moments of light against the shade that could truly bring us in to the story. It would be unfair to say that Izzard’s comedy background should have been embedded in to the script however moments of dry humour and wit wouldn’t have gone a miss in a story that lives in its own drama. Some of the themes were also left slightly underdeveloped as it’s not really until the end that we get a true sense of the girls confusion and terror.

A watchable picture that looks really nice and has its moments. Six Minutes to Midnight won’t have you staying up late thinking about it, but it’ll keep you intrigued until the end.

Six Minutes to Midnight available now on NowTV and Sky Cinema