'The Choral' Review: Ralph Fiennes Gives an Amazing Performance in an Uneven WWI Story | TIFF 2025

The Choral takes place in 1916 in a quaint little town in Yorkshire, England. World War I is raging, and with the dwindling number of men in the small town of Ramsden, the local choral society must recruit from the teenage boys and girls of their community to put on their newest show. Captained by scorned musical director Dr. Guthrie, played by a thoughtful and passionate Ralph Fiennes, the town is determined to keep on pushing forward with business as usual, and although young soldiers return home injured from the war periodically, the town remains relatively unmarred on the surface. With theater director Nicholas Hynter at the helm and penned by playwright Alan Bennett,The Choral can't deny its theatrical roots, with the final act truly showing off those dramatic strengths, while the rest of the film is bolstered by strong performances despite an uneven script.