Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie (2014) - Film Review

Starring: Brendan O'Carroll, Eilish O'Carroll, Jennifer Gibney & Paddy Houlihan

Screenplay: Brendan O'Carroll

Directed By: Ben Kellett

Certificate: 15

 

Whenever I think of the Mrs Brown's Boys franchise, it leaves me with conflicting thoughts. The one half of my brain sees it as my guilty pleasure, because I enjoy and laugh along a lot of the time with the TV series and I think many other critics are far too harsh on it. However, the other more critical half of my brain recognizes its many faults and it definitely pales in comparison to many other great comedies currently on TV. It's for this reason that the announcement of Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie left me with more conflicting feelings, and essentially, we have a film that could go either way – good or bad.

 

Agnes Brown, known more commonly as Mrs Brown, is a market trader selling fruit and veg at Dublin's Moore Street Market. In recent months, more and more stalls have been shutting down and political candidate P.R. Irwin has entered an arrangement with a ruthless Russian businessman to build a shopping centre on Moore Street. When Mrs Brown is next on the list to be targeted, Agnes has to defend her stall from intimidation and attack.

 

One of the things I really enjoy about the original TV show was its simplicity and design. While Mrs Brown ends up getting into all sorts of crazy antics and situations, the way the show was filmed is remarkably simple, especially when we consider that there are currently three series and a whole host of Christmas and New Year specials that only make use of three sets – Mrs Brown's kitchen, the living room, and the local pub. Obviously given that this is the film adaptation, there's going to be new additions and new elements added to the show. Many of these additions come in character form, and it's sad to say that many of the film's new characters are staggeringly offensive and bordering on racist. First of all, we have the main villains of the film, and in this case we have a gang of stereotypical Russian thugs complete with guns, sunglasses, dark suits and black SUVs. Simply how on Earth these guys fit in with the tone of the Mrs Brown's Boys franchise is beyond me. Next we have Rab Patel, a minor character who works in Moore Street with Mrs Brown … and for some reason, everyone is adamant that he's from Jamaica, despite him repeatedly telling them that he clearly isn't. To be honest, this is one of the strangest things about the film, especially given the fact that it's not funny.

 

However, the absolute worst addition, and the worst thing in the film for that matter, is Mr Wang, leader of … the blind ninjas (I'm not making that up). The film's Mr Wang is wholly racist and offensive on every possible level, especially given how Brendan O'Carroll is the one playing Mr Wang as well as Mrs Brown herself. In his performance, we're given a hideously exaggerated accent, with Brendan O'Carroll swapping his Ls and Rs around, as well as narrowing his eyes. Now usually I don't have a problem with comedy that strays into the offensive zone (I actually enjoy comedians like Frankie Boyle) but this isn't so much funny as it is genuinely uncomfortable to watch. Honestly, by the time Mr Wang showed up, it wouldn't have been much of a surprise if the Black and White Minstrels showed up to join him.

 

On the brighter side, I was glad to see that Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie does maintain some aspects of the original show, and these work much more in the film's favour. For example, scattered throughout the film and left untouched in the editing room are occasional bloopers and out-takes, just as we'd see from the original show. Keeping some of the out-takes in was something that wasn't needed, but that I was glad of, especially given how I often find that in comedy, the bloopers can be funnier than what was originally scripted. Something else working in the film's favour is the same sense of friendship and togetherness among the cast. Again, just like in the TV show, the majority of the cast are in their usual roles and are part of the O'Carroll family, so the family feel among the characters definitely feels real. Essentially, while the film is far from anything I can call good (I can't be entirely confident in saying its average either), there were still times where I genuinely laughed along. The critics that slated this film, saying there wasn't a single laugh to be found, aren't entirely true. Though I didn't laugh anywhere near as much as I should have, there were still moments where I'd be lying if I told you they weren't funny. Such sequences included the opening skit with Mrs Brown getting ready for her day, while burning the toast and struggling to put her tights on while Tom Jones' She's A Lady played in the background. Also, during the sequences in court, I found myself laughing with barrister Maydo Archer's bout of Tourettes, though mostly because of how hilarious it was to see such a charismatic actor as Robert Bathurst shouting out obscenities in court.

 

I mentioned earlier that I enjoy the simple production style of the original TV show, but I understand this isn't anything that will translate well into a film – a new visual style is needed. However, the new visual style we eventually got from director Ben Kellett was flatly directed and visually boring. With the exception of the first five minutes, the visual style of Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie is entirely bland and forgettable. It's made even worse by plenty of sequences that simply don't belong or fit in with the rest of the film. For example, at the both the beginning and end, there are song and dance moments that see the whole cast joining in, but they're not necessary and just feel out of place. Also, one of the most laughably bad shots of the film sees P.R. Irwin and his Russian collaborators planning their next move, while in the background a ferry passes by with the gigantic logo for Irish Ferries written on the side. It's probably the worst and certainly the least subtle bit of product placement I've ever seen.

 

Narratively, one of the biggest problems with Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie, aside from inconsistent pacing, is that its themes and messages cause the film to shoot itself in the foot. Essentially, the film revolves around the idea of not selling out to big companies and loss of identity. Now that's a good message to go with and I really respect it, but this film was not the right medium in which to tell it. The cruel irony with Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie is that it warns against selling out, without realizing that it itself is a sell-out! With the phenomenal success of the TV show on the BBC, this film wasn't needed and it comes across as a mere cash-grab. In the past, Brendan O'Carroll has done an admirable job of not milking the Mrs Brown's Boys brand, turning down offers for thing such as a game show starring Mrs Brown, but here this clearly wasn't the case.

 

In conclusion, if there's one thing that Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie proved, it's that the format should stick to television. While it may please more dedicated fans of the show than me, it doesn't do enough for me. Brendan O'Carroll can be a good comedy writer, and in the past he's written moments of sheer hilarity on the TV show, but he's clearly more suited for television than film. The same applies to director Ben Kellett, and while he's done a great job on the TV show, he really hasn't here. This film isn't as bad as most critics have made out, but it certainly isn't anywhere near good, and with narrative problems and characters like Mr Wang weighing it down, the film unintentionally feels incompetent and somewhat mean-spirited.

Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie



4/10