Why am I even bothering to review the film? Because that's what I am compelled to do. And, as I have said many times before, I genuinely approach every film viewing with at least a grain of optimism.
The slim plot sees Mrs. Brown (Brendan O'Carroll) in trouble. She's been landed with a huge tax bill and may well lose her market stall. On the plus side, she has a lot of people who want to help her. On the downside, most of them are pretty incompetent, despite their good intentions.
From what I can tell, this movie follows the form of the TV show almost to a tee. It has all of the usual characters, of course, and even has moments in which mistakes are shown, breaking the fourth wall in a way to wring a few extra chuckles.
This isn't a completely laugh-free zone. I admit that one or two moments amused me, thanks to the fact that the script, written by O'Carroll, throws in everything from an A-Team reference to blind ninjas to a lawyer who suffers from Tourette's syndrome when stressed. Elish O'Carroll is also consistently enjoyable in her supporting role. The direction from Ben Kellett keeps everything fairly plain and simple, with the exception of one or two moments that pretend to be upping the spectacle of the whole thing (such as an opening song and dance number).
O'Carroll is fine, I guess, in the main role. He certainly seems to know his audience. But I have to seriously wonder about anyone who finds his other small role funny, a Chinese man named Mr. Wang portrayed in a way that easily scrapes the bottom of the barrel when it comes to "Chinese" people in cinema. You know, characters like . . . . . . . . . . . . Mr. Yunioshi, played by Mickey Rooney, in Breakfast At Tiffany's. At least Mr. Wang doesn't take up too much screentime, otherwise we might not have time for the gag that involves some Irish men who decide that it is time to solve problems with another bomb, forgetting that their old age might make things a bit trickier. Oh, how I laughed at that particular punchline.
If the bad moments weren't quite SO bad then I could have grudgingly rated this as an average comedy that just wasn't for me. Unfortunately, the worst elements really do a lot of damage, forcing viewers to re-evaluate many of the other gags, none of which hold up well under closer scrutiny.
Of course, fans of the show will already have seen/bought this. So my opinion ultimately means feck all.
3/10
I see no reason why you would want to order this movie, but here is a link anyway - http://www.amazon.com/Mrs-Browns-Boys-DMovie/dp/B00OTTDHNK/ref=sr_1_3?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1420387257&sr=1-3&keywords=mrs+browns+boys
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And/or you could also buy my e-book, that has almost every review I've written over the past 5 years. It's very reasonably priced for the sheer amount of content.
The UK version can be bought here - http://www.amazon.co.uk/TJs-Ramshackle-Movie-Guide-Reviews-ebook/dp/B00J9PLT6Q/ref=sr_1_3?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1395945647&sr=1-3&keywords=movie+guide
And American folks can buy it here - http://www.amazon.com/TJs-Ramshackle-Movie-Guide-Reviews-ebook/dp/B00J9PLT6Q/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1395945752&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=TJs+ramshackle+mov
As much as I love the rest of the world, I can't keep up with all of the different links in different territories, but trust me when I say that it should be there on your local Amazon.
Interesting comments on the Mrs Brown phenomenon. Two new episodes of her comedy series were the highest viewed programmes over Christmas here in the UK,and her tours are a sell out, and she provides work for all her family as they are all related.
ReplyDeleteIts a clever mix of OLD MOTHER RILEY with a man in drag and the person playing his daughter is actually his wife, and also those 70s comedy shows by the likes of Dick Emery or Les Dawson - broad, common humour - which was washed away by the emergency of the smart new kids on the block (French & Saunders, Absolutely Fabulous, Steve Coogan et al) who got all the praise and lots of shows in the 90s. The twist here is the bad language. But it is all good natured fun, though the gay son is too much of a caricature, and her neighbour Winnie is a delight.
O'Carroll is a genius at re-selling his material. There are books, tours, the tv series, and even a previous Mrs Brown film AGNES BROWN in 1999 with Angelica Huston who also directed, maybe a labour of love for her as she grew up in Ireland Being Irish myself I get the humour and like her endless cardigans but it is all too silly and lowest common demonator to take seriously..