reverendike

As others have said, not a simple, formulaic rom-com. Sharp writing in general, with a few minor storylines weaved into the main plot. Script and staged comedic bits were consistently funny. Would have given this a 9, but the musical intrusions were horrendously loud relative to the rest of the scenes. Perhaps they teach this sound-editing technique in film school - going from normal to SUDDENLY LOUD to normal - as a method of prodding the audience's interest. And it might work in a big theatre setting - maybe - but it's absolutely ridiculous for anyone viewing a Blu-Ray or streaming at home. Prepare to keep your volume remote handy so you can compensate a couple dozen times during the film.

I'm a fan of the main actors in this US version, but compared to the original UK show, it falls a bit flat. For example, Vicki Pepperdine's character is self-absorbed to an extent that makes you cringe in the UK show, while Laurie Metcalf plays her comparable character over the top in the US version. Perhaps the producers feel that American audience can't appreciate a deft touch and need to have things hammered into them a bit more.

This reminds me of Rake, another case where an American network tried to imitate a brilliant foreign comedy. In Getting On and in Rake, instead of taking the IDEA of the original and tweaking it according to the strengths of the US cast, they copy the stories almost verbatim, change a few references, and plug in different actors. The actors are quality, but it definitely doesn't work as well as the original ...