Actor Benedict Cumberbatch is shining in great satirical light in the trailer for his new film ‘The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar’. In a mockingly sarcastic tone, the actor goes full on ‘Sherlock’ mode.
Also featuring Dev Patel, Ben Kingsley and Ralph Fiennes, the trailer mostly focuses on the self-absorbed, rich and narcissistic English aristocrat Henry Sugar, narrating his daily ins and outs in a very fest, monotonous tone, until one day he reads about something extraordinary.
Dev Patel, who is essaying the role of Dr. Chaterjee in the film, is seen treating a patient called Imdad Khan, played by Ben Kingsley. The man, even though not blind, can see without his eyes.
To showcase this new feat, Kingsley’s character wraps up his head in full ‘Mummy’ style and is able to avoid every obstacle while pulling forward on his wheelchair, inside a typical 1940’s English hospital.
Dev Patel is astounded by this revelation, who can only gawk his eyes in amazement while following Khan, and says ‘He can actually see without his eyes, this is extraordinary’.
The character of Henry Sugar, reads about this in a news clipping and is amazed, stating that ‘This could change my whole life’. Then he proceeds to go on a new journey, in order to find the secret to seeing without his eyes, which he can use for gambling and cheating at poker.
The synopsis of the film reads: “From Wes Anderson comes an adaptation of Roald Dahl’s beloved story about a rich man who sets out to master an extraordinary skill to cheat at gambling.”
The aesthetic of the whole film is based around 1940’s UK, and in classic fashion, covers that complete with a full out pompous aristocratic look.
As stated in the synopsis, the film is based around one of the six stories from author Roald Dahl’s book seven short stories book called ‘The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More’. The only difference is that the movie will only focus on the first story.
Then the trailer concludes with a montage of the various key characters, with Ralph Fiennes making an appearance as Roald Dahl himself, saying ‘There was once a wonderful man, named Henry Sugar. I thought people should know about him’.
The trailer is done in classic Wes Anderson style, which is no surprise as it is directed by Wes Anderson, and will premiere on September 27, 2023 on Netflix.