Batalhadores Heróicos

There is something of the swings and roundabouts in this adaptation of the cracking BBC series. On the one hand, the feature length format allows us to develop more the Perry/Croft characters, on the other it removes some of the quickly-paced potency of the humour... Either way, though, it's still an hugely enjoyable watch that reconciles great sitcom writing from these two literal geniuses with a cast and scenario that delivers potent reminders of just how those "left on the shelf" determined to make a valuable contribution to the protection of their country against the Nazi scourge. It has the same cast as the television series, and depicts the formation of their unit under the command of nitwit "Capt. Mainwaring" (Arthur Lowe). The film has a more comically militaristic theme to it - they drill, eventually with firearms (not a great idea in their gas-powered, converted, butcher's van!) before they find themselves engaged in manoeuvres under the watchful eye of the slightly bumptious "Gen. Fullard" (Bernard Arched). Of course, just about everything goes wrong - but the humour is genuinely funny; the dialogue subtly enhances what we can not only see, but frequently anticipate - and that adds bundles to the enjoyment of this. Again, it swipes at the pomposity of the upper classes, the aspiration of a newly establishing middle class and of the industriousness of the chancer - expertly epitomised by "Hodges" - part time warden/greengrocer and black-marketeer "Pte. Walker" (James Beck). The film does rehash a little of the original innovation, but it's still a great spirited depiction of some really courageous folks who did their bit!

Perhaps the TV show was just too good, or having the Germans land in Walmington was just too improbable. Whatever, this film version of the much-loved BBC classic doesn't quite work. Everyone in it is fine but it is less slapstick and silly than it was on the small screen, and suffers a bit in comparison. I do like the bit where the stuck up officer sails down river on a bit of broken bridge still sitting on his horse though, and the oil slick machine is pretty funny!

"Dad's Army" gets off reasonably lightly here, in view of the old problem British cinema had in adapting popular sitcoms to film in the 1970s. There is a coarsening of the humour, but the historical setting perhaps provides a disincentive to the low-rent ribaldry so beloved of, say, the era's Carry Ons, Confessions..., Frankie Howerd or even Steptoe and Son films.

And, contrastingly with Brambell and Corbett, Lowe and Le Mesurier and the rest are restrained, more or less fully in tune with their television portrayals. It is only the often simplified nature of the scriptwriting which impoverishes the characters; they are otherwise present and correct. I feel it was a good decision to re-use the plot of "The Man and the Hour", the series' opening episode, which proves an excellent way to establish the setting, scenario and characters - was this possibly done to help with overseas sales? (I would hazard a bet that it was most successful in Britain overall, which would say a lot...) Such scenes as that of Mainwaring's condescending attitude to the chap in the wireless shop (as they listen to Eden's speech...), and the initial 'interviews' with Jones, Walker etc. stand up as effectively as they did on TV, and are beautifully played.

Unfortunately, a glaring error is to actually show the Germans, and mainly as purpose just to point up the plucky 'ingenuity' and 'improvisation' - themes constantly emphasises in the film - of the British Home Guard in comparison with the ruthlessly-planned German army. A contemporary reviewer rightfully mentioned that this robbed the film of the TV series' air of gentle, almost otherworldly fantasy: the Germans are always imagined, and are thus far more serious... and the TV series' focus was on the platoon's world: equally absurd and deadly serious. They are in exactly the same shoes as the older audience, present in the Home Front during WW2, who would never have *seen* actual Germans. The film takes a more 'epic' approach, which makes for a strongly nationalistic tone: most marked in John Burke's novelisation of the film, with its solemn 'and we won' ending.

The essential quality of Englishness is beautifully reflected in Godfrey's reading Edward Lear beneath a tree in the pouring rain, and in the use of location filming in the timeless, gorgeous English countryside. Unfortunately, this is double-edged; like the TV series, the 'training manoeuvres' seem just an excuse to get some nice exterior filming. Admittedly, the humour of these scenes might appeal to some, and some of the stalwart actors manage to raise laughs in me, but overall, the long section in the middle of the film is just padding between the cogent bits.

The ending in the church is terribly low-key, but fittingly in the sense of the 'stiff upper lip' heroism the film is celebrating - heroism always with a touch of the amateurish and absurd. I don't particularly like the ears-to-the-ground final scene, mind; they should have ended with the blissfully English 'going about business' routine of the platoon in civilian life: Mainwaring passing them on the street.

How can I quite summarise my feelings? While much of what I dislike is distilled in the unfortunate 'comedic' musical score, which particularly punctuates the 'training exercise' scenes, the score also contains a lyrical passage when Mainwaring and Wilson speak in silhouette against a wistful sunset:

Wilson. It's a beautiful sunset, sir.

MAINWARING. It's a beautiful land, Wilson...

This film maintains the level of acting seen in the original series, and it makes an admirable attempt to be consciously cinematic. Yes, the focus on Englishness is fairly simplistic, and the scripting notably less subtle, but at least the key elements are in harmony: characters, landscape and theme. It is overall a good encapsulation of the bumbling tenacity and inherent madness of the British; the ridiculous 'messing around' in a sublime countryside, and somehow pulling through to save the 'beautiful land' and its values, against the Nazi threat.

Overall, the Dad's Army movie is very funny, although the humour isn't quite as catchy and sparkly as in the TV and radio series. So where does this leave us, the viewers? If you've never seen Dad's Army then the movie is a good way of bringing yourself up to speed and getting hooked on the mad world of Walmington o/S. The downside is that you might not "get it" because, as I said, the humour in the movie is a bit on the stolid side.

For Dad's Army buffs the movie holds nothing new as the story is more or less a cutup of the TV series, but it's a unique chance of seeing your favourites in "high def" as compared to the shitty quality of the BBC video recordings.

The movie also features what must be the lamest holdup sequence in the history of the universe. I can't make up my mind if that's a positive or a negative, though.

This is just like the classic TV comedy , in fact it`s exactly like the classic TV comedy and your opinion of this film version all comes down to what you thought of the show . My own opinion is that it`s a little bit too gentle for my taste , but unlike many film spin offs from TV shows at least it`s recognisable with the characters played by the same actors who played them on television , compare this with the big screen versions of THE FUGITIVE , LOST IN SPACE etc

The film is basically split into three parts . The first part sets up the formation of the home guard platoon , the continuity here differs slightly from the first episode broadcast in 1968 but it is rather similar to the original episode , the second part features the platoon going on a training excersise while the third part features a hostage situation with some downed Luftwaffe crew . I don`t know if it`s coincidence but the best remembered episode of the series was the one featuring a U-Boat crew in a hostage situation , the two plots are very very similar .

So to sum up if you loved the BBC`s DADS ARMY you`ll certainly like this film version