Home > Comedy >

Roald Dahl's Esio Trot

Watch Now

Roald Dahl's Esio Trot (2015)

January. 02,2015
|
6.9
| Comedy Romance
Watch Now

Mr. Hoppy is a shy old man who lives alone in an apartment building. For many years, he has been secretly in love with Mrs. Silver, a woman who lives below him. Mr. Hoppy frequently leans over his balcony and exchanges polite conversation with Mrs. Silver, but he is too shy to disclose how he feels. Mr. Hoppy longs to express his feelings to Mrs. Silver, but he can never bring his lips to form the words. Mrs. Silver has a small pet tortoise, Alfie, whom she loves very much. One morning, Mrs. Silver mentions to Mr. Hoppy that even though she has had Alfie for many years, her pet has only grown a tiny bit and has gained only 3 ounces in weight. She confesses that she wishes she knew of some way to make her little Alfie grown into a larger, more dignified tortoise. Mr. Hoppy suddenly thinks of a way to give Mrs. Silver her wish and win her affection.

...

Watch Trailer

Cast

Similar titles

Reviews

Greenes
2015/01/02

Please don't spend money on this.

More
Misteraser
2015/01/03

Critics,are you kidding us

More
Rosie Searle
2015/01/04

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

More
Kinley
2015/01/05

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

More
Master Baldwin
2015/01/06

While the whole plot could seem rather weak, this movie is a perfect example of a modern storytelling done with mastery. The pace of the movie is voluntarily slow, the actors are excellent, the breaking of the fourth wall is used with wit by a character who at first seems to be there only to tell us the story, and there are some surprising events that are typical of an action movie.

More
supermaggie
2015/01/07

I always thought that Roald Dahl's stories were creepy, but this story is the most horrific of all: suggesting that animals are things that can be exchanged without consequences is just disgusting. This is not charming, this is exactly what is wrong with the human race and why animals have to suffer from them. A "hero" who does this, does not deserve to succeed and therefore this story does not work for me at all.

More
Jackson Booth-Millard
2015/01/08

I only know the really obvious works of Roald Dahl, i.e. James and the Giant Peach, Willy Wonka, Fantastic Mr Fox, The BFG, The Witches and Matilda, so when I saw this TV made film was coming to television at Christmas time, and the two cast members in it, I was most looking forward to it, written by Richard Curtis. Basically lonely ageing bachelor Mr. Hoppy (Dustin Hoffman) lives in a London flat, he has two loves in his life, the garden on his balcony, and the widow who lives in the flat below him, Mrs. Silver (Dame Judi Dench), the only time he usually sees her up close or talks to her is going in the elevator, but over the years he has always been too shy to express his feelings for her. Mr. Hoppy tries to tell her sometimes from his balcony, but she is too fond of her new tortoise Archie to respond, and his opposite neighbour Mr. Pringle (About Time's Richard Cordery) is just a massive bore, too focused on talking about himself. But Mr. Hoppy sees an opportunity to make Mrs. Silver happy and show how much he cares, in conversation she tells how she wishes her tortoise would grow bigger, he convinces her that he knows a Bedoiun chant that if she speaks it will make her tortoise grow bigger within a month, she says if that happens she will be eternally grateful to him. Next day Mr. Hoppy hatches a secret plan, he buys dozens of tortoises, he hears Mrs. Silver read the chant he gives her, Esio Trot ("tortoise" spelt backwards), with the help of a special fishing rod he creates he swaps Archie for one ever so slightly bigger tortoise, while Mrs. Silver is away, when returns she is overjoyed to see that this chant is working. As the gradual "growing" of the tortoise continues, Mr. Hoppy and Mrs. Silver talk much more often from their balconies, Mr. Pringle is the one who helps them get together for dinner, but the neighbours do not have much opportunity to talk while he is being boorish, and worse comes when it looks like Mr. Pringle is trying to win her affections, Mr. Hoppy is almost about to give up his plan, but she continues to be happy with her "growing" tortoise, so he continues. It comes to the point when, after a month of the secret swapping, the tortoise in its box has become so big it can no longer fit through the doors of its house, Mrs. Silver is so happy that she invites Mr. Hoppy to come to her flat to celebrate, Mr. Hoppy excited rushes downstairs, and unknowingly leaves his door open for the real tortoise Archie to escape, just as Mr. Hoppy proposes marriage to Mrs. Silver, Mr. Pringle knocks and shows Archie was wandering around, Mr. Hoppy's plan is rumbled. Thinking he no longer can win the heart of Mrs. Silver, Mr. Hoppy returns all the tortoises to the pet shop and sits alone and crushed in his flat, finding two tortoises left behind hiding he gives them to the children of his neighbour, the Narrator (James Corden), telling the whole story to him, he understands and feels for Mr. Hoppy, maybe there will be no happy ending in this story. However, Mrs. Silver knocks on Mr. Hoppy's door, firstly to tell him that she has no interest in Mr. Pringle, he is such a bore, and secondly to tell him that, in fact, she has had feelings for him for the many years that have lived opposite each other, and she answers his earlier proposal question with a "yes", a few weeks later they are married and live happily ever after. Also starring Big School's Jimmy Akingbola as Keen Pet Shop Keeper, Psychoville's Lisa Hammond as Mrs. Desmond and Derek's Salo Gardner as Mr. Mavrokoukoudopolous. Hoffman is fantastic being the polite and longing neighbour, Dench is sweet as the woman who loves her tortoise and maybe has affection for her neighbour also, the two are perfectly cast, the way this film is made perfectly encapsulates the feel of Roald Dahl stories that have gone before, the characters are great, the story is simple, funny and sweet, it is just a must see family treat, a fabulous romantic comedy. Very good!

More
aaliyah Ismail
2015/01/09

this film was tedious, typical and overall SO lame!!! Mr hoppy is SO boring and monotonous!! watch this film if you want to be put to sleep... Mr pringle is the only mildly humorous character but is eventually the one who out Mr hoppy's devious plan.Mr hoppy is a boring old man who lets loneliness and boredom get the better of him, his plan is creepy and weird and very devious which he claims to be out of love for her but clearly not.he fails to show his love for her in any way and then asks her to marry him!! really dude... and im pretty sure than you cant have 100 tortoises in one tiny flat...

More