Brendan O'Carroll's strong willed Irish matriarch Agnes Brown first appeared on Irish radio in 1992, and in the last twenty odd years, the character has gone from strength to strength, appearing in books (the first of which inspired the Anjelica Huston starring Agnes Brown), stage plays, direct to DVD movies, and, finally, t.v, where Mrs. Brown and her f-word filled humorous antics have achieved a crazy amount of success. It was only a matter of time that O'Carroll would make the jump to the big screen, and now we have it with Mrs. Brown's Boys D'Movie.
I will start off by saying that so far I've been resistant to O'Carroll's cross-dressing charms, not really caught up in the wave of hype that has made Mrs. Brown's Boys beyond popular in Ireland and the U.K. But as the cinema lights dimmed and the picture rolled, I found myself finally giving in, and enjoying the ride, if it was somewhat bumpy. It's not an extremely polished affair, but the roughness adds to its charm. Another check in the win column for D'Movie is that it doesn't try to adapt itself for film, instead presenting a big screen episode, complete with many of the shows tricks, such as numerous fourth wall breaks, and keeping in any outtakes and flubs on the actors part (these actually prove to the movie at it's funniest, and is thankfully used sparingly so as not to outstay its welcome). Fans of the show will get an absolute kick out of it, while newcomers, if they keep an open mind, will definitely find themselves chuckling. There isn't much in the way of story, with the plot, revolving around Agnes fighting off a shadowing developer trying to close down her market stall, pretty much a skeleton to hang the jokes off.
It starts off well enough, bursting with energy in the opening act, and O'Carroll is on top form, not surprising considering how long he has been doing the character. In fact, most of the cast have been doing this a very long time, and fit into their roles perfectly. Clunky story telling soon raise its head, but it's not in sacrifice of the laughs, which come thick and fast, even though not all of them stick. An odd change of pace signals an attempt to become slightly dramatic, which only succeeds in being extremely jarring, but it is soon put to one side for the finale, which, much like the rest of the movie, is a collection of jokes which thankfully work more than they fail.
Make no mistake, this is one for the fans, so if the Mrs. Brown's Boys boxset adorns your shelf add however many stars you want to my final score. For those not familiar with the t.v show, there is enough here to make you laugh.
I will start off by saying that so far I've been resistant to O'Carroll's cross-dressing charms, not really caught up in the wave of hype that has made Mrs. Brown's Boys beyond popular in Ireland and the U.K. But as the cinema lights dimmed and the picture rolled, I found myself finally giving in, and enjoying the ride, if it was somewhat bumpy. It's not an extremely polished affair, but the roughness adds to its charm. Another check in the win column for D'Movie is that it doesn't try to adapt itself for film, instead presenting a big screen episode, complete with many of the shows tricks, such as numerous fourth wall breaks, and keeping in any outtakes and flubs on the actors part (these actually prove to the movie at it's funniest, and is thankfully used sparingly so as not to outstay its welcome). Fans of the show will get an absolute kick out of it, while newcomers, if they keep an open mind, will definitely find themselves chuckling. There isn't much in the way of story, with the plot, revolving around Agnes fighting off a shadowing developer trying to close down her market stall, pretty much a skeleton to hang the jokes off.
It starts off well enough, bursting with energy in the opening act, and O'Carroll is on top form, not surprising considering how long he has been doing the character. In fact, most of the cast have been doing this a very long time, and fit into their roles perfectly. Clunky story telling soon raise its head, but it's not in sacrifice of the laughs, which come thick and fast, even though not all of them stick. An odd change of pace signals an attempt to become slightly dramatic, which only succeeds in being extremely jarring, but it is soon put to one side for the finale, which, much like the rest of the movie, is a collection of jokes which thankfully work more than they fail.
Make no mistake, this is one for the fans, so if the Mrs. Brown's Boys boxset adorns your shelf add however many stars you want to my final score. For those not familiar with the t.v show, there is enough here to make you laugh.
