There was a sea of grey hair at this screening - I'm not being patronising

M, 113 minutes

3 stars

There's still an older filmgoing audience out there - for the right kind of film, like this one. It's British, it's a period piece, it's got a classy cast, it's tasteful, it's dramatic and funny. If only there'd been a Dame, just about all the boxes would be ticked.

The cinema was nearly full, with plenty of grey hair and bald heads, at a preview screening I attended of The Choral, directed by Nicholas Hytner and written by Alan Bennett. Their previous collaborations include The Lady in the Van and The History Boys, based on stage plays by Bennett; this was written for the screen. All the right kind of films for that older audience.

My comments on the target audience might sound patronising, but they're not meant to be. These films are well made and seldom fall below a certain standard of entertainment and quality, but they can feel a little familiar when you've seen a few, and that's the case here. That will trouble some people more than others. I enjoyed The Choral despite that sense of déjà vu and some other reservations.

The story takes place in 1916 in the Yorkshire mill town of Ramsden. Many men have been conscripted and are fighting in the war, among them the choirmaster of the local choral group. A replacement is needed urgently for an upcoming performance.

The choir committee decide to take a chance on Dr Henry Guthrie (Ralph Fiennes). His musical credentials are not in question but he does seem a bit fishy. He's returned from a long period in Germany, whose artistic culture he praises, he's an atheist, and he's not married. Hmmm. Still, he's the best choice available.

Performing Bach's Saint Matthew Passion, even in English, is deemed too problematic - the composer was German, after all - and eventually they settle on Edward Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius despite the composer being - shudder! - a Roman Catholic. At least he's British. All this might seem quaint and comical now but it's not hard to believe the feelings were real. And, this being a British film, the class system is never far away, even if talent isn't decided by social standing.

Fiennes often looks pained on screen, and his character has plenty of cause to be here as he conducts auditions, trying to find good singers and dealing with choir politics. The call is put out and young men - some from a local war hospital, others awaiting conscription - are among those recruited. The path to great art does not run smooth, despite Guthrie's efforts and exhortations. There's work to be done to make the piece performable by the forces at hand and the outside world has a way of intruding.

The film juggles a lot of characters and subplots. There's Clyde (Jacob Dunman), who returns from the war with only one arm to find his girlfriend has moved on. Replacing Alderman Duxbury (Roger Allam), who reluctantly cedes the lead role to the more talented young man, can only be scant consolation. Then there's the black Salvation Army nurse, Mary (Amara Okereke), who faces prejudice from some, lusty propositions from others, and has a beautiful voice. And Mrs Bishop (Lyndsey Marshal), who entertains gentlemen in her front room for money. And many more.

As a result, the film feels a little unfocused and its shifts in tone can be a little jarring. Some moments, like Guthrie counselling the devastated Clyde, work well. Others, like one young man delivering telegrams informing women they've been widowed while his friend wonders about his chances of bedding them, feel a little off.

An interesting bit of trivia is that Allam and castmate Alun Armstrong were in the original London cast of Les Miserables in 1985, playing Javert and Thenardier respectively. The movie adaptation of that show was, like the film, a mixed success.