Steptoe & Son

This is a master piece of British t.v cinema. I have all the steptoe and son episode's on DVD. Their home and its contents have been a part of the shows make-up, (THEY ARE RAG AND BONE MEN) and there home trys to reflect that fact. Thats one of the reasons harold keeps trying to get away, he is only to aware of his messy surroundings. (dust? more like bleedin top soil) The film is just a re-working of an episode they did called 'STEPTOE AND SON AND SON' I have to concead that this is not as good as the series it still has all the humor you come to expect. BUt if you haven't seen the series then you may not get the all the humor, and if you like the film then you WILL love the series. purely British sit-com.

The 1970s was the decade of big screen adaptations for popular British TV series and STEPTOE AND SON is the first of two such workings for the ever-popular show (STEPTOE AND SON RIDE AGAIN would be released the following year). Fans of the series are likely to enjoy it as it sees the return of Harry H. Corbett and Wilfrid Brambell to their most famous roles, and the old camaraderie is back once more as if they'd never been away.

However, this is a film that feels very different to the good-natured and light-hearted TV show. There's a cold, almost ruthless streak of pessimism in the production that makes this feel more like a tragedy than a comedy. In some ways it feels like an episode drawn out to feature length and the single-strand plot makes some elements of the production feel drawn out and repetitive.

In essence the tale is about Corbett falling for a stripper and deciding to marry her, only for the needy Brambell to get in the way. Carolyn Seymour successfully portrays the awkwardness felt at coming between this pairing. There's little more to it than that, but at times this film feels like a depiction of psychological and emotional torture, with Brambell turning the thumb screws at every opportunity. It's testament to the skill of the two stars that this remains a likable comedy despite the darkness of the script. Inevitably, the grimy surroundings are better realised than ever on film as opposed to television, and the envelope is pushed further than ever with nudity and bad language in the mix.

Steptoe and Son was massively popular in the UK, and sure enough in keeping with a trend that continued throughout the 1970s, it was a show that was guaranteed to have a movie spin off. In fact it got two! Such was its popularity.

This first feature length film has the basic traits of the show, the tragi-comedy aspects of a son (Harry H. Corbett) forever destined to be held back by his lecherous and unclean father (Wilfrid Brambell) are fully born out. All set to the very basic working class backdrop of a Rag & Bone family business.

Enter a stripper, excuse me, exotic dancer (Carolyn Seymour), who bizarrely marries Corbett and cues up a number of scenes where old man Steptoe single handedly manages to destroy the marriage on the honeymoon.

It's not the coarseness of the screenplay that hurts the movie, or some of the dialogue that has the PC brigade spitting feathers, it's that in spite of sound performances and some well written sequences (Galton & Simpson), it's just too bleak for its own good!

The gags quickly dry up entering the second half of the picture, which leaves us with only our good will to stay with characters that we have a mild interest in anyway. For hard core fans of the show, it's easy to go with the flow, but there's nothing here to remotely entice the outsider to venture further into the hygienically challenge world of Steptoe & Son. 6/10

I am a lifelong fan of the Steptoe and Son TV series - indeed it is probably my all-time favourite sitcom and one of the true greats of that genre. There is no doubt that much of that appeal remains in this film version but all the same it is often an uncomfortable, bittersweet viewing experience.

It doesn't give too much away to say that the film revolves around Harold finally marrying and then his father ensuring that things do not work out. Albert thwarted many of his son's romances and other plans for happiness in the TV show. In this film version though what happens almost seems depressing, even cruel. It's hard to explain why. The TV series did a great job of injecting serious and reflective moments and even pathos alongside the comedy but here it becomes overpowering, maybe more of a comedy-drama rather than comedy with dramatic touches. Perhaps because of the longer running time the snatching away of Harold's hopes just becomes too drawn out. Or maybe it's because in the TV series he never reached this prospect of happiness, of actually having a wife and a chance of a normal life. Maybe it's also the fact that Harold's girlfriend and later wife Zita is a genuinely appealing and sympathetic figure that makes the final outcome harder to take. If Zita had been selfish, manipulative and generally unpleasant (but maybe Harold unable to see it) Albert's interventions would have been more palatable.

The 90 minute film is generally too much of a stretch even for an excellent sitcom and so we do see even some very funny scenarios drawn out too much for their own good and maybe one or two elements added to pad out the running time which would have been better omitted.

It's certainly interesting to see the studio-bound TV format translated to the much more expansive medium of film and this is done well so we avoid seeing the Steptoe home looking entirely different to its TV origins as sometimes occurred with sitcoms translated to the big screen. The character of Albert does have his crudity and contempt for basic hygiene pushed a little too far, maybe making him even more dislikeable than was necessary. It's worth pointing out that at times Albert does show he genuinely cares for his son and his predicament and that was a welcome feature and true to the series. In essence Albert is a conflicted man who does care for his son but is so desperate not to be alone that he cannot let him go, no matter the cost to his happiness.

All the performances are fine and there is certainly still a lot to be commended here. There are some brilliantly funny moments that stick long in the memory, most notably Albert and a packet of Flash! However overall this seemed like a missed opportunity. The later film "Steptoe and Son Ride Again" is more plainly comedic and a better adaptation of the show for the cinema but the ultimate versions will always be the TV episodes.

If you're a fan of the original TV series then you'll enjoy both of these films although they are both very different. That series was of course one of the first comedy-dramas seen on TV seamlessly blending slapstick with biting social commentary and sometimes tragedy. Not wanting just to be a long TV episode, the first film tries to be a little more serious, a little more drama than comedy. Some people fund that a bit unpalatable at the time so the second film goes the other way being more of a traditional comedy film.

When you watch the first film you might wonder how on earth this is classed as a comedy because it is very dark. It does have its funny moments but overall it is quite emotionally draining as we're witness to Harold's life falling apart aided by his father's pretty horrible cruelty and mental torture. Besides YES releasing CLOSE TO THE EDGE, 1972 was not a happy year for the UK and this film gives us a voyeuristic insight into how depressing things were back then for the majority of people. Although it's heavy going at times and you're more likely to cry than laugh, it is enjoyable and satisfying. What makes this extra special is Carolyn Seymour as the girl who captures Harold's heart. She plays a stripper in a seedy club and as someone who takes her clothes off for a living she is of course very attractive but because she's such a great actress, she's also instantly likeable even though she's actually not that nice. Her character is just so real so much so that you can perhaps empathise with her most of all.

As a result of the negative backlash against the first film, the next one, in my opinion went too far the other way. Although maintaining the spirit of the original show this one decides to be a comedy and indeed it is a very funny comedy. If you're a Steptoe fan then this will make you laugh but maybe because I'm a miserable old git, I prefer the first one.