The League of Gentlemen Live Again! - Review

"You'll never leave!"
That is the inviting but threatening welcome that greets people when arriving in the town of Royston Vasey. Very much a local town for local people.
It would be fair to say that nearly 20 years on from when audiences first visited the town in 1999 for the BBC series, the creators have never really left the characters behind.
Individually the team have gone on to great success in their own rights; Mark Gatiss (Dr. Who, Sherlock), Jeremy Dyson (Ghost Stories) and Reece Shearsmith & Steve Pemberton (Psychoville, Inside No. 9).
Yet in this culture of golden age thinking and nostalgia, with every other band from the Nineties regrouping and going on a cash-grabbing money making tour, the question arose; would we see the return of the League?
The answer was yes but as evidenced by the incredible three-part Christmas TV special, the reformation was not fuelled by a desire to line their pockets but a genuine love of the characters and need to continue their story in this modern era.
At a sold out SEC Armadillo in Glasgow, it was clear that the majority of the audience was made up of hardcore fans as evidenced by the "You're my wife now Dave!" t-shirts and people with sellotape strapped to their faces pinning back their noses.
Many of whom would take the time to pay a visit to the Local Shop where they could pick up some of Pauline's Pens or sample the Precious Things of the shop.
The show is very much a tale of two halves.
The first half features the team in their traditional tuxedos from when they first started performing on the comedy circuit and rattled through some of their most iconic, classic sketches at a breakneck pace including a game of "Go Johnny Go Go Go Go!"; Stella, Charlie and Tony playing Trivial Pursuit;
The skill of the trio is evident as they easily morph into the recognisable characters simply by altering their voice or mannerisms.
All this leads to a fantastic first act closer from Legs Akimbo Theatre Company as director/producer/writer/actor/choreographer Oli Plimsolls laments the lack of awards recognition given to his issue-based childrens educational theatre. Taking aim at all sorts of targets from the West End including a hilarious barb aimed at Stomp but simultaneously a thinly veiled dig at the lack of recognition that the League themselves received during their original TV run.
The second half is fully set within Royston Vasey and begins with a West End/Les Mis-style musical number between Tubbs and Edward (in full costume and make up) that continues on from the cliffhanger at the end of the Christmas special.
The audience roared with approval as all their favourite characters made their return including Les McQueen; Geoff, Mike and Brian; Herr Lipp; Papa Lazarou and even one character from beyond the grave.
It would be doing a disservice to those attending the tour to spoil the surprises in store during the second half which is all brand new material. For those unlucky to get tickets, you will just have to wait for the inevitable DVD that will hit shelves just in time for Christmas!
Despite working on different projects over the last ten years, the group haven't lost a step during their sabbatical as the comic timing between Gatiss, Shearsmith and Pemberton is exceptional and the love and chemistry they share with each other is evident to the audience who gave the team a well-deserved standing ovation.
The League of Gentlemen Live Again! might be billed as a local show for local people but there truly is something for everyone on this celebratory tour that cements the League's position as the UK's greatest comedy troupe.

5 stars

Dead In A Week (Or Your Money Back) - EIFF review

Dead In A Week (Or Your Money Back) is the blackest of black comedies that attempts to prove that suicide is painless… or at the very least, very, very funny.
Yes, there may be some audiences that are horrified by the idea of a film making jokes about a very difficult, emotional and topical subject matter. However those people probably haven’t actually watched it because the film manages to walk the fine line to handle the issue of ending one's life with sensitivity, care, humour and also how at the darkest moments in life, there is a chance to turn everything around. With the help of the right people.

One night struggling writer William, played by Aneurin Barnard (Dunkirk), attempts to end his life by jumping off a bridge. As he stands there hesitating, he is approached by a mysterious shadowy figure who offers him some assistance.

After the attempt fails (it turns out this is his ninth - if you include the cries for help), William meets with Leslie (Tom Wilkinson) who explains that he is a hitman and will be able to take the stress out of ending one's life for a small fee.

After signing on the dotted line, William receives interest in his book about suicide from a publisher and editor Ellie (Freya Mayor). Turns out he might have a couple of reasons to live for now but will Leslie be happy to cancel the contract?

What sells the film is the fully realised world that writer/director Tom Edmunds has created. Leslie works for a company of assassins and hitmen that present themselves as a legitimate business. They have brochures, away days for training and quotas to meet. It's like a British branch of the assassin's guild from John Wick.

Wilkinson's character is getting on a bit and faces retirement if he is unable to meet his quota for the year and William's contract is all that stands in his way.
Edmunds balances the two storylines perfectly; a young man wanting to end it all while an older man faces the end of his own life as he knows it. The performances from Barnard and Wilkinson are exceptional and pitched perfectly to sell the concept and make the audience empathise with both men.
There is also excellent support from Marion Bailey as Leslie's wife Penny and a scene-stealing cameo from Christopher Eccleston as Leslie's boss Harvey. Yes, he might be doing the standard British-thespian-as-a-gangster role which means doing their own take on Ben Kingsley's Sexy Beast performance (see also Ralph Fiennes in In Bruges) but who cares when it is this hilarious?
Dead In A Week should lead a long, happy life in cinemas, on DVD and streaming and is one film that won't have you asking for your money back.

4 stars

Listen to interviews with Tom Edmunds and Freya Mayor from the Edinburgh International Film Festival on the Filibuster podcast here at The Nerd Party.

Patrick - review

Patrick is a complete dog's dinner of a film.
A quintessentially "British" comedy which consists of around 1/3 of Beattie Edmondson's Sarah gurning and stomping her feet at how awful her life is; 1/3 laughing at Sarah's attempts to run and 1/3 Sarah shouting "Patrick!" and pug reaction shots where he tilts his head.
The story of a Bridget Jones-esque character having to deal with an unwanted dog, a new job, dysfunctional love life, etc, etc is so formulaic and predictable that if it was a Choose Your Own Adventure book, there would only be one option per page because every single audience member could correctly predict how the plot will unfold scene to scene.
Also the movie seems to be one 96 minute long infomercial for singer Amy McDonald's new album as the soundtrack consists of around nine of her songs which relate to the plot.
How to sum up the experience of watching Patrick? Pitiful, Unfunny, Ghastly, Lazy and Yawn-inducing. So that would be P, U, G, L, Y, you ain't go no alibi, you Pugly!

1 star

Ideal Home - EIFF review

Synopsis:
Erasmus (Coogan) and Paul (Rudd) are a gay couple whose life is turned inside out when a ten-year old boy shows up at their door claiming to be Erasmus' grandson. Neither Paul, nor Erasmus, are ready to give up their extravagant lifestyles to be parents, but maybe this little kid has thing or two to teach them about the value of family.
Review:
On paper, given the synopsis, Ideal Home could have been a series of garishly cheap, cliched and jokes as over the top as Erasmus's wardrobe or interior design.

Thankfully the actual film under writer/director Andrew Fleming's careful eye is surprisingly sweet and never goes for the stereotypical “gay” jokes but instead the humour comes out of the odd couple situation of having to deal with a kid and also their dysfunctional relationship.
The chemistry between Coogan and Rudd is some of the best you will see all year and their relationship is always completely believable. A chemistry that is shared with Jack Gore who plays the grandson Bill.
Where Coogan may get many of the big laughs, Rudd delivers some surprisingly complex emotional work. Between this and Mute, Rudd continues to prove himself in 2018 as more than just the comedic actor he broke through as in the early Noughties.
Plus it is the best product placement for Taco Bell since 1993's Demolition Man.

4 stars

Ideal Home screens at the Edinburgh International Film Festival on Saturday 23rd June, 8.30 and Monday 25th June, 8.40. To book tickets, click here.
Ideal Home is on general release in the UK from Friday 13th July.

Game Night - review

With the world getting people down at the moment, between politics and weather, sometimes audiences just need a good old-fashioned, fun Friday night movie that does not require too much brain power and does exactly what it says on the box.
In the midst of Awards season, finding such a film can sometimes feel like a Trivial Pursuit but Game Night has the Monopoly over the competition going into Oscar weekend.
Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams play the lead characters who are ultra competitive and would normally be that really annoying couple in real life that everyone hates but have enough charm and chemistry to make them likeable.
They run a weekly game night in order to hang out with their friends; childhood sweethearts Kevin and Michelle and the dumb, without a Cluedo Ryan who brings a succession of dates who are certainly no Masterminds either.
They run each night like a military Operation in order to avoid the unwanted attention of neighbour, police officer and former gamer Gary (a scene-stealing Jesse Plemons) but their perfect Game of Life threatens to be sunk like a Battleship when, Guess Who?, Bateman's more successful older brother Brooks turns up to host a special game night involving a murder-mystery style "kidnapping"role play party where one of the guests will be taken and the others must Connect Four clues to solve the crime.
The problems begin when Brooks is kidnapped for real for getting mixed up with real criminals and they teams Scrabble around to win the game, unaware of the real Risk involved.
The film takes several fun Twisters and turns along the way and, unlike many comedies this decade, is shorter than a session of Dungeons and Dragons.
The end result is not a comedy working at the top of its game but it does just enough to pass go and collect $200.

2 stars

Cuban Fury - review

An extreme incident of bullying causes child salsa champion Bruce Garrett to pack it all in. 25 years later, a grown up, slovenly Bruce (Nick Frost) finds himself dusting off his Cuban heels in try and win the heart of his Salsa-loving boss Julia (Rashida Jones) but faces competition from office lothario Chris O'Dowd.

You can imagine this a sequel to Billy Elliot on the "what if..." he had listened to his dad and given up dancing and ended up working in a lathe manufacturing plant.

In his first real leading man role, Nick Frost goes Hot Fuzz to Hotstepper and to his credit does the majority of his fancy footwork himself and would do rather well on the next series of Strictly Come Dancing.

With many hours spent in the dance studio learning the steps, it would have been nice if as much time and effort had gone into the script as the character of Julia isn't really fleshed out beyond she's his boss, American and likes salsa. Plus there is sadly also a lack of real laughs which is surprising given Frost's involvement with most of them coming from O'Dowd doing his best 80's sleazeball douchebag impression.

There is no "Ten from Len" or even a "SEVEN!" for this comedy which has a good heart but sadly takes the odd misstep when it comes to laughs thus finding itself rather flat footed leaving us with a salsa that is sweet rather than spicy.

3 stars