According to Shakespeare there are seven ages
of man, you may not be aware of the whole poem of the same name, but you’ll know
one of its oft quoted lines, “All the
worlds a stage and all its men and women merely players..”, from "As You Like It". According to the
poem, the sixth stage is old age, “the
sixth stage shifts into lean and slippered pantaloon. With spectacles on nose
and pouch on side…. A world too wide for his shrunk shank; and his big manly
voice turning again to towards childish treble…” This stage is something we’ll all experience
eventually. The sixth age is also the theme of last month’s book group selection.
The book is known by two titles; originally it was “These Foolish Things” by Deborah Moggach. But after the release of
the hugely successful film adaptation, all subsequent printed copies of the book
were renamed, “The Best Exotic Marigold
Hotel”.
The book tells the story of a group of
pensioners who take up the opportunity to live out their remaining years away
from the cold British weather, the high cost of living and the deterioration of
society and the values of old. For the warmer and less economically challenged
climbs of a new Indian retirement home. The book follows their new lives and their
adjustment to the totally alien cultures and experiences.
The film which features a cast of such British
acting heavyweights as Dame Maggie Smith, Dame Judi Dench, Tom Wilkinson and
Bill Nighy. Tells the story of a group of pensioners who travel to a brand
spanking new retirement home in Jaipur, only to discover on arrival that it is far
from the glamorous claims and pictures of the brochure and on the verge of
closure. So they set about turning its fortunes around while finding romance
and new lives in the diverse and developing cultures and economy of
As a rule I never read a book after I've seen
the film adaptation first. I’ll go see a film adaptation after reading a book,
just to see how the writer and director interpreted it; because a film is never
as good as how your imagination pictures the story. In this case the book was never going to be as
good as the movie. It’s rather slow and the characters lives before they go to India
This is not to take away from the fact that Moggach
is an excellent writer, who has written twenty books which include seventeen
novels and 3 collections of short stories. She’s also an acclaimed scriptwriter
who is responsible for the screenplay of the BBC Drama “Pride and Prejudice”, starring Colin Firth. She’s adapted four of
her own books for TV, as well as the “The
Diary of Anne Frank”, a Nancy Mitford novel and an Anne Fine novel.
Surprisingly, whilst she did adapt a screenplay for “These
Foolish Things” , it was Ol Parker's version that was finally used and I can see why. Moggach has lead an interesting life which
includes living in Pakistan, as well as campaigning for the change in the law
regarding Assisted Suicide, following her mothers imprisonment for assisting a
terminally ill friend take their life.
So my advice is, if your feeling your age and
looking for something to pick yourself up, don’t reach for this book. But go out
and rent the film, as they say laughter is the best medicine. This is certainly
the tonic and may also convince you to add a trip to India
