james__uk

Unfairly slated Ealing-style slapstick comedy. Obviously fun to make, with familiar faces and heart-warming family drama, along the lines of "OMG what is Mum doing now?", as she tries to solve her daughter's seemingly non-existent marriage prospects. Along the way, the audience bops along to Indian remixes of popular western disco and pop, and wonders how an unlikely murderer will meet their fate. The plot is unsophisticated yet gripping. The dialog is natural, with gags, but the film's undeniable humour comes from the same loving, awkward moments that drive it's story. I can't see anyone walking out of this movie, unless they don't wish to be entertained.

It's a Wonderful Afterlife (2010) is not a work-of-art, not a beautifully made film. But it does not try to be. It is a funny murder-love-story with falling down moments, with familiar actors having a blast making ridiculous comedy. If you want a horror show, or a logical plot, then it may let you down. But for laughs, and for a screenful of some of our most popular actors (with new faces too), it will tickle you. Nothing much to complain about here, if you love life.

The hideous potato-chip delivery men. Lager-lout comedian Johnny Vegas unthinkingly ambles from one bored sexual encounter to the next. Another (Mark Gratiss) charges from one potential encounter to another (was that really jam on his face?). Meanwhile, boyish Mackenzie Crook (from The Office) is used for sex mercilessly by the women in the chip shop.

Marilyn Monroe made famous meaningless noise "Poo-Poo-Peechou", saved by class. The potato delivery men have none of that but their affable working class ways, punctuated by sparks of humour and clear hints of sketch routines, as they spiral in an out of control of what might be guiltily called the modern British sex life.

Received a British film grant, some say this film serves sex with too much chip fat. Maybe.

A well-off pilot (?) whose wife is expecting gets the shock of his life, when somebody takes away his very reason for living. To get revenge, he must change his whole life, become a person he had previously never contemplated. A world of casual violence beckons, but the man keeps alive his belief in human goodness, just about. Without the tools or skills to live in horrible new places, he'll need friends and luck to survive..

The locations range from great to spectacular, and supporting characters are cast solid and believable. You can feel this man's pain as everything he loves is brought into terrible danger. At times he seems to go almost mad, but by focusing totally on what he must do, he is (luckily) able to find a way to come through. Could make you cry out loud..