Bed Among The Lentils (1987)

The wife (Maggie Smith) of a popular small town vicar is bored and unhappy with her bourgeois life. She is also a passive alcoholic though her husband seems unaware of her drinking problem. She begins an affair with the younger Indian shopkeeper in the town next to hers. Written and directed by Alan Bennett (THE LADY IN THE VAN), this is a filmed "talking head" one woman monologue with an expert performance by Maggie Smith as the morose housewife reflecting on her monotonous life and marriage. Bennett's dialogue is subtly sly and witty and one can't help but empathize with the wife's plight. The play is just under an hour in length and concludes satisfactorily. A must for Maggie Smith fans.