Suitably exotic but not that foreign this time around

THE Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, otherwise known as 50 Shades of Grey Hair, features an all-star ensemble of distinguished British actors taking a break from Shakespeare, Stoppard and Shaw to indulge in some cinematic horsing-around by reprising their roles in an earlier film about a set of friends in their sunset years, far from home and finding purpose in life.

The first Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012) was a sleeper hit, proving that there was room for movies not starring sexy action stars and their sweet young things. Of course, it helped to have legends of the stage and screen in the line-up, especially a couple of grand dames, hamming it up and having fun in the sun.

Judi Dench and Maggie Smith sail serenely through the new film on full autopilot mode, assisted in no small way by their colleagues. Director Richard Madden and writer Ol Parker also return for seconds, setting a similar tone and trying to recreate the magic of the original, which was based on a 2004 novel by Deborah Moggach.