BFF17 The Exception

Directed by acclaimed British theatre director David Leveaux, and starring Academy Award winner Christopher Plummer (Beginners) and Academy Award nominee Janet McTeer (Albert Nobbs) is this adaptation of Alan Judd’s novel The Kaiser’s Last Kiss about German Kaiser Wilhelm II’s post-WWI exile in the Netherlands.

The Exception concentrates on the last years in the life of Wilhelm (majestically performed by Plummer). Living in a country mansion with his wife, Princess Hermine (McTeer), the erstwhile emperor is given a new lease on life by the Nazi invasion of France that sees Holland fall under German subjugation. Fantasising about a return to Berlin, Wilhelm soon finds himself under the supervision of an SS captain (Jai Courtney, Terminator Genisys) who is concerned there may be a British spy in the Kaiser’s midst.

While searching for clues, the captain takes an immediate interest in the Kaiser's new maid (Lily James, Cinderella). What unfolds is a story of subterfuge and espionage, all of which comes to a head with a visit from the icily ruthless Heinrich Himmler (Eddie Marsan, Sherlock Holmes), head of the SS. This is historical recreation at its finest.