ADAPTING a popular television show for the big screen is a tricky business – Monty Python mastered it as has Saturday Night Live on certain occasions. Even Mission Impossible managed to put out some good efforts.
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But Mrs Brown’s Boys is an interesting choice to go to “D’Movies”.
Undoubtedly, this live Irish sitcom is popular and not just with one demographic. Seniors, middle-aged, 20-somethings and teenagers all get a laugh from the sketches.
The danger of producing a film based on popular demand is that it will quickly become stale.
Shows like Ali G are long forgotten while a franchise like Monty Python is still as popular as ever after 30 years.
Like so many other successful British sitcoms, Mrs Brown’s Boys has limited its number of television episodes.
It only had three season and 23 episodes after starting off as a family theatre show written by Brendan O’Carroll who plays lead character Agnes Brown. The relatively small number of episodes is an advantage to the film that keeps the gags and characters fresh.
In “D’Movie” Agnes Brown and her family’s fruit stand is threatened by developers and the foul-mouthed Irish mother is thrust in the media spotlight.
Mrs Brown’s Boys D’Movie manages to successfully pull off the delicate balance of keeping its humorous essence while taking on the bigger aspects that come with film productions.
Agnes Brown continually breaks the fourth wall and chats to the audience while O’Carroll and fellow cast members have no problem corpsing (laughing uncontrollably during filming) in front of camera as they do in the show.
There are outtakes not only in the end credits but also through the film, something I can’t remember seeing at the cinemas before.
O’Carroll and his cast and crew should also be congratulated on resisting the temptation of using big stars for cameos. The original cast has the talent to hold up sketches and the plot without “star power”.
The only disappointing aspect for Mrs Brown’s film debut is the plot is quite predictable but it is a pretty small bone to pick, especially when fans and audiences will know what to expect from “D’Movie”.
Rated “M”, there is no reason Mrs Brown’s Boys D’Movie couldn’t be a family outing, especially if the TV show is part of your regular viewing.
Mrs Brown’s Boys D’Movie (M) is now showing at Bendigo Cinemas. See page 3 of the Bendigo Advertiser for session details.
Follow film reviewer Chris Pedler Twitter @FilmNerdChris.