THE DUKE
A flawed but touching comic gem for discerning adults.
Should You Watch It?
THE DUKE is a delightful, touching British comedy with a masterful central performance from Jim Broadbent. Its humor carries serious convictions about family reconciliation, self-sacrifice, charity, care for lonely elderly people and veterans, and opposition to unjust taxes.
The cost is real. The film sides with Kempton’s morally relativistic defense of stealing a government-owned painting, includes a brief bedroom scene, and contains strong profanities. Its positive values and redemptive moments give it genuine merit, but the content and moral ambiguity make it unsuitable for children and young teens.
If you are an adult or older teenager who can weigh those concerns carefully, WORTH THE TRIP — ADULTS ONLY.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESIn 1961, Kempton Bunton is a 60-year-old Newcastle taxi driver, unsuccessful playwright, and chronic do-gooder. He campaigns for elderly people to receive free BBC television licenses and objects to the government spending a large sum on a famous painting of the Duke of Wellington.
After seeing the painting at London’s National Gallery, Kempton involves his younger son in its theft. He then tries to use the situation to help the elderly and the poor—but the consequences bring his family and his country’s justice system into conflict.
Is It Any Good?
Four stars means this is a highly entertaining, touching comic gem despite its flaws. The movie is filled with wonderful comic lines, and Jim Broadbent gives a masterful performance as Kempton, a frustrated playwright and Quixotic defender of elderly people and veterans.
Helen Mirren also gives an excellent performance as Dorothy. The film’s serious emotional material includes the couple’s grief over their teenage daughter’s death, while its ending resolves that sorrowful subplot in a charming, very moving way. The plot and characters are consistently engaging.
The Worldview
THE DUKE promotes strong pro-family and redemptive values. It honors charity, caring for other people, concern for lonely elderly people and the poor, self-sacrifice, and reconciliation within marriage. It also supports Kempton’s belief that the television license fee is an unjust tax and attacks big government’s high taxes and questionable spending.
The film’s weaknesses are moral relativism and an antinomian, or lawless, attitude toward crime. It encourages viewers to side with Kempton’s attempt to justify stealing the painting because he intends to give ransom money to charity. The movie also includes a socialist, pro-worker attitude and a play imagining Jesus as a woman, while offering at least two positive references to Jesus, including “Lamb of God.” Its stated faith in people rather than God further complicates its moral outlook.
At the center is a longing for family reconciliation and relief from grief. Scripture gives that longing a firmer hope: “He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds” (Psalm 147:3).
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Dominant Worldview and Other Worldview Content/Elements
Light, mixed pagan worldview promotes some moral relativism and an antinomian or lawless attitude toward a crime, but this immoral, pagan content is mitigated by strong pro-family elements, a positive attitude toward helping other people and charity, a concern for lonely elderly people and the poor, and a redemptive act of self-sacrifice, along with at least two positive references to Jesus (including a reference to the “Lamb of God”) a plus a socialist, pro-worker attitude is briefly expressed a few times, but the lead character has a concern for veterans and an anti-government attitude toward unjust taxes
Foul Language
17 obscenities (including five “f” words), four Jesus profanities and three light profanities
Violence
No violence
Sex
Briefly depicted fornication in one scene
Nudity
No nudity
Alcohol Use
Brief alcohol use
Smoking and/or Drug Use and Abuse
Brief smoking but no drugs;
Miscellaneous Immorality
Stealing, getting away with stealing, lying, government stupidity, man says he has “faith, not in God but people,” and man has written a play envisioning an alternate history where Jesus was a woman, titled “The Adventures of Susan Christ.”
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
Kempton wants public money used to help elderly people rather than to buy an expensive painting. How should Christians respond when they see vulnerable neighbors being overlooked?
James 1:27 · Galatians 6:10The film asks whether a good intention can make theft right. What does Scripture say about doing wrong in order to produce a good result?
Romans 3:8 · Exodus 20:15Kempton and Dorothy carry deep grief after losing their daughter. How can a family make room for grief while continuing to love one another?
Psalm 34:18 · Romans 12:15The story moves toward reconciliation through self-sacrifice. What does biblical reconciliation require from people who have been hurt?
Ephesians 4:32 · Philippians 2:3–4The Final Word
THE DUKE is funny, moving, and richly performed, with strong pro-family and charitable convictions. Its profanity, brief sexual content, and moral defense of theft are too serious for children and young teens. For discerning adults and older teenagers, the answer is WORTH THE TRIP — ADULTS ONLY. For younger viewers, choose something else.
