The Best Offer

"Oldman" (Geoffrey Rush) is a successful, if rather fastidious, fine art auctioneer who lives his life in a meticulously planned fashion, frequently wearing gloves from his extensive collection to avoid contact with things or people. Nearing the end of his career, he is asked by the enigmatic "Miss Ibbetson" (Sylvia Hicks) to value an extensive collection from her villa. She is very reluctant to meet him in person and initially this makes him want to abandon the process, but his interest in some rusting cogs and wheels he finds on the floor and the valuable collection itself makes him persevere, hoping to gradually improve the relationship. As to the metalwork, he turns to his friend "Robert" (Jim Sturgess) and together they discover that it might be part of an early mechanical man - and worth a fortune! As the story progresses, both he and her have to face challenges to their unique, solitary, ways of living and a peculiar sort of romance ensues that could ultimately fulfil both of their lives. Then there's the twist - and it's quite a twist too. This is really a vehicle for Rush, with the occasional contribution from Strugess and from Donald Sutherland as his slightly dubious friend "Billy", and he delivers really quite well. The portrayal of his almost clinically self-controlled character morphing into that which we see towards the end is really well crafted and Giuseppe Tornatore builds the tension cleverly and disarmingly with a sting in the tail that left me feeling just a little sad.