The year is 1916. The setting is the (fictional) hamlet of Ramsden in the very real county of Yorkshire. The Military Service Act, which imposed conscription on British males ages 18 to 41, has not yet been put into action, but support for the war is already on the wane. While older folks might happily proclaim that they wish they could serve, it’s hard to really feel that way when the town’s volunteer servicemen who do return home come back hurt, haunted, and maimed.
For a still-smaller subset of Ramsden citizens, the war is but a backdrop to more pressing concerns: with so many young men off on the front lines, the town’s choral society is really hurting for members. And when its leader decides to enlist, things get even more dire. Silly as it might sound on the surface, the choral society offers the mildest of diversions for people who need it. People like the man who pays for it, local mill owner Alderman Duxbury (Roger Allam), who has recently lost his son in the war. Or people like
Joe Fytton (Mark Addy), who takes pictures of the town’s boys before they ship off for war. Or Bella (Emily Fairn), whose soldier boyfriend Clyde is MIA. Or best pals Ellis (Taylor Uttley), Lofty (Oliver Briscombe), and Mitch (Shaun Thomas), who are just about to turn 18. Or Mary (Amara Okereke) who just loves singing while she collects change for the Salvation Army.
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In Nicholas Hytner’s handsomely mounted — if more than a bit stagey — “The Choral” all of these people (and more!) come together to put on a show and stave off a bit of darkness during very dark times indeed. The result is a light, low-key crowdpleaser that occasionally steps into more harrowing territory before neatly spinning right out of it. If being in the choral society keeps things light, watching “The Choral” approximates that feeling to a tee, for better and for worse. Still, it’s heartening to see an original wartime tale so dedicated to illuminating the human spirit without getting too big or braggy or boastful. They just want to put on a show, and “The Choral” delivers one.
That’s all helped immeasurably by the arrival of their new choir master, Dr. Henry Guthrie (Ralph Fiennes) who is tasked with shouldering much of the film‘s drama and bigger concerns. A former organist turned conductor, Dr. Guthrie is back in the UK after living and working Germany for many years (“by choice!,” one Ramsden citizen all but spits), and his appointment to the gig is hardly without controversy. Children throw things at him, the older members of the society sneer at him, and everyone seems to have an opinion on his close relationship with a younger German naval officer (even if no one ever comes out and says what the nature of the relationship is, another heavy piece of the story skated over).
As Guthrie and his motley society grow (Alan Bennett’s screenplay introduces many intriguing faces we learn precious little about), they struggle to land on a choral composition to perform. Too many of the great composers are (gasp!) German, and even if Dr. Guthrie loves them, the town can’t abide by anything too “Fritz,” not during such a terrible time. Eventually, the group agrees to mount a performance of Edward Elgar’s “The Dream of Geronitus,” a blunt good vs. evil parable that evolves as the group does. Soon enough, they’re considering a “reimagining” (World War I survivors, they’re just like 2025 Hollywood producers!) that speaks to what they’re facing now.
The expected bonding follows: romances take root, more than a few members of the society get tangled up in positively shocking relations, and hearts are broken. But music and song and the possibility of coming together to make something beautiful and potent, if even for a single performance, pushes the society on, just as it pushes “The Choral” on. Its lightness ultimately proves to be both a balm and a feint, as Hytner and his talented cast inevitably moves toward a heartbreaking performance of “Geronitus” that offers some serious heavy lifting to this gently crowd-pleasing story.
It’s similarly pleasing to see a smaller scale war story rendered this way and with this much affection, a reminder that life goes on, just like a song, even when it seems like everything should stop in the face of so much horror. Maybe it’s that life doesn’t stop that holds the horror back, at least long enough for a riff or two.
Grade: B-
“The Choral” premiered at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival. Sony Pictures Classics will release it in the U.S.
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