DIANE KEATON – PATRICIA HODGE – LULU

Arthur’s Whisky
“Who Says You’re Only Young Once?”
Sky Cinema – Premiering January 1

Within the first ten minutes of Arthur’s Whisky, it becomes clear where the story is heading. The film introduces three elderly women who have been close friends for years and who accidentally stumble upon an elixir that allows them to become young again. It is a story as old as storytelling itself — the irresistible fantasy of revisiting the past and reliving a time when life felt full of limitless possibility.

In this version of the tale, the miracle comes in the form of a bottle of whisky. The women drink it in an attempt to escape the monotony and weight of their everyday lives, only to wake up the next morning transformed — suddenly young again. Given such a gift, they decide to explore every opportunity it offers. Inevitably, that includes romantic and sexual experiences. But Arthur’s Whisky has more on its mind than simple wish fulfillment.

Arthur himself discovers the potion first, briefly reclaiming his youth before his death leaves his wife Joan (Patricia Hodge) facing a world that now views her through pitying eyes. Joan’s closest friends, Linda (Diane Keaton) and Susan (Lulu), refuse to see her reduced to a stereotype — a grieving widow expected to quietly dissolve into sorrow. They see her as a woman in her own right. When they visit Joan’s home, they find the whisky, drink it together, and awaken the next day miraculously rejuvenated.

As expected, they do what most people would do in their situation: they step back into the world to experience life as twenty-somethings once more. Yet the world they reenter is not the one they remember. Coffee culture has evolved beyond their comprehension, fashion and language have shifted, and younger generations carry themselves with a confidence and autonomy these women never possessed at that age. Becoming young again, it turns out, also means unlearning decades of ingrained habits and assumptions.

Throughout the film, the women reflect on love — questioning whether it truly gives life the richness they once believed it did. These moments of introspection are balanced with the excitement and joy of inhabiting bodies that feel both familiar and strangely foreign, almost as though they are wearing someone else’s skin. This strange rebirth is exhilarating and disorienting all at once. The presence of seasoned performers like Keaton, Hodge, and Lulu allows the film to explore this familiar premise with surprising nuance and emotional clarity.

Arthur’s Whisky (2023) – Review

Despite its predictable narrative, Arthur’s Whisky is unexpectedly charming. Part of its appeal lies in how it reframes a genre that once centered on women enduring emotionally stunted, self-absorbed men — stories Diane Keaton herself famously starred in. Here, Keaton plays a woman discovering the power of radical self-acceptance. Whatever physical limitations or health challenges arise, she meets them without shame. The film treats this not as an act of heroism, but simply as part of living — lending it a sincerity that rises above mere sentimental indulgence.

That said, the film does not entirely avoid sentimentality. Several conversations about age and gender drift into overtly tender territory, and some humor comes from familiar fish-out-of-water moments as the women realize how disconnected they are from modern life. The story is not only about older women becoming young again, but also about their younger outward selves (played by Genevieve Gaunt, Esme Lonsdale, and Hannah Howland) struggling to prevent old habits from bleeding into their fantastical present.

Importantly, the comedy never feels cruel. It emerges from wonder rather than mockery. The women fall in love with the changes they see around them while also embracing the changes within themselves — physical, emotional, and personal. They allow themselves to acknowledge desires long suppressed: the wish to feel wanted again, whether by someone younger or by someone of the same gender. The film treats these moments with dignity and respect.

Arthur’s Whisky functions like a bucket-list film, but with a crucial difference. The characters are not driven by the fear that time is running out. Instead, they savor their present lives without looming dread or urgency. As a result, the film feels light, sincere, and warm — even as it leans into familiar clichés.