You stupid boy....

shamen27
Dec 30, 2016
2 min read

COLINS FILM CLUB REVIEW: DADS ARMY (2016)

Okay, this is going to be a brief review... DADS ARMY is a kind of reboot/remake of the fondly remembered TV series and its spin-off film. But the plot on this new attempt is paper thin. It centres around a spy needing to be caught before the big plans for the Allied Invasion get leaked back to Berlin. The big, big problem with the film is not the cast, they all do an admirable job of trying to fill the shoes of a very beloved origi...nal cast, nor is it running time, which feels just about right, no - the problem is two-fold. First of all a lot of the jokes are simply not funny or up to the standard of the TV series, and secondly (and most importantly) the identity of the spy is given away within the first 10 minutes of the film...!! Do you know of any film which drops its main plot arc squarely in view within the opening minutes and then has to sustain a "lie" until nearly the films end?? This oversight ruined it for me - I know its meant to be a comedy, but the best comedy is one of dramas, and when you let your biggest and fattest cat out of the bag from the offset, then your in a World of trouble. Plus one other slight niggle... why did Warmington on Sea have the look and feel of a Yorkshire seaside village when a map we are shown in the film clearly places it on the South Coast...?? We have white chalk cliffs alright, but there was little else to suggest this Warmington was from Southern England..!! DADS ARMY struggles to endear itself, which is a shame as I was really hoping this would be at least halfway decent. Toby Jones just about gets his Captain Mainwaring right, but Bill Nighy flounders as Wilson, and the others fare no better, especially the guy playing Fraser! Only Micheal Gambon manages to make his version of Godfrey seem affable and at times I almost thought it was the original Godrey back again... but only for a moment. There is of course Catherine Zeta Jones, obviously regretting taking such a long break from acting. She adds a bit of glamour but is far from a sultry and seductive type, almost tripping back into Darling Buds territory at times. To the credit of the writers, the Director and the Studio, they were obviously banking on this not doing well because why else would you set your film almost at the end of WW2...?? ...Because you know its a rubbish film and you can`t bear the thought of any possible sequels, that's why.. So, who do we think they are kidding, Mr Hitler...? Well, anyone who doesn't wait for this to go on sale in Tesco`s bargain bin for a quid, that's who... if you must have it, that is...