Robbie Coltrane was a terrific comedic and serious Scottish actor, best known for episodes of Blackadder, Cracker, two James Bond films, and the Harry Potter films, it was sad to hear of his death aged 72. I had always wanted to see this film, I recognised he and the star of Monty Python were in it, it made sense to watch it after he passed away, directed by Jonathan Lynn (Clue, My Cousin Vinny, The Whole Nine Yards). Basically, in London, criminals Brian Hope (Eric Idle) and Charlie McManus (Robbie Coltrane) want to leave their lives of crime and move to Brazil, but their younger brash boss Casey (Robert Patterson) disapproves of this. Before their next job to rob a local Triad gang, Brian meets Faith Thomas (Doctor Who's Camille Coduri), a short-sighted waitress who he becomes very attracted to. During the robbery, Brian and Charlie betray Casey's henchmen, Abbott (Robert Morgan) and Morley (Winston Dennis), steal the money and flee. They are forced to abandon their car which runs out of petrol and find a nearby convent during the ensuing gunfight. Casey places a bounty on Brian and Charlie's heads, and the Triads are also looking for them to get the money back. Disguising themselves as nuns, Brian and Charlie introduce themselves to the Sister Superior, Liz (Janet Suzman), as Sisters Inviolata and Euphemia, respectively. Faith was at the scene during the gunfight and was shot in the arm, she ends up at the nunnery after posing as a mature student to get inside and is taken to the infirmary. Brian and Charlie are forced to stay in the convent dressed and carry out duties, including teaching, as nuns until they can get the suitcases filled with money back from the cabinet it is locked in. Brian pays a secret visit to Faith, and for her safety he claims that he is married to end their relationship. Faith goes to the church and intends to use the confession box; Charlie distracts Father Seamus (Tom Hickey) and poses as the priest to hear what she has to say. She talks about the robbery and mentions her feelings for him, he convinces her to keep silent. On her way out, she is abducted by the Triads and interrogated. She directs them to Casey, and they set her free, but bumping into a lamppost and hitting her head on the road, she goes to hospital where Triads have taken the place of staff. Brian and Charlie buy tickets to Brazil on the telephone, but Brian wishes he could take Faith with them. Brian decides to tell Faith the truth but is unaware she did not return to the nunnery. They go to her flat and only barely escape from Abbott and Morley, who had been sent to retrieve her by Casey. They sneak back into the nunnery dressed as nuns, they accidentally wake up an eccentric nun, but Sister Superior assumes her screaming is due to her alcoholism. Brian learns that Faith is in the hospital, with her father (Stewart Harwood) and brother (Peter Geeves) visiting her, but she is heartbroken, believing he does not love her. Brian and Charlie wake up early intending to steal the money back and get to the airport, but they are caught and exposed by Sister Mary. After grabbing the suitcases, they are pursued by Sisters Liz and Mary, Morley and Abbott, and eventually Casey and the Triads. Brian forces Charlie to go to the hospital, where Brian tells Faith the truth while Charlie stalls the gangsters. While Casey is arrested by the police, Faith escapes with Brian and Charlie disguising themselves as nurses, hiding the suitcases under the stretcher blanket. One suitcase is dropped during the chase, Sister Liz and Sister Mary find the lost suitcase, and decide to use the money to fund a drug rehabilitation clinic. Sister Liz then leads the nuns in prayer, thanking God for sending them Sisters Euphemia and Inviolata, and asking him to keep an eye on them. Brian, Charlie, and Faith arrive at the airport and check-in, but the attendant is warned by a policeman that they are looking for Brian and Charlie. On the British Airways plane, Faith is seated, while Brian and Charlie have managed to sneak aboard, and are posing as flight attendants, they all successfully escape to Brazil. Also starring Doris Hare as Sister Mary of the Sacred Heart, Lila Kaye as Sister Mary of the Annunciation, Gary Tang as Ronnie Chang, David Forman as Henry Ho, Nigel Fan as Dwayne Lee, and Father Ted's Ozzie Yue as Ernie Wong. Idle and Coltrane make a relatively good double act as the bumbling often bickering fugitives, it is an all-British film with petty crime, thugs, international criminals, and police on the leads tails. It tries to be funny with jokes about being in drag and being religious, and Coduri's character being short-sighted, but they are all a bit hit-and-miss, especially the moments of smuttiness and swearing. The attempts at action with guns and chases are a bit uneven as well, but I did titter a couple of times, so it wasn't a bad crime comedy. Worth watching!
Review of Nuns on the Run
