Due to the fact that we are probably entirely used to comedies like Friends and South Park constantly playing on our TV screens, we have forgotten how much TV comedy has changed over the years. Back in the 70’s, comedies like Are You Being Served?, Bread and ‘Allo ‘Allo ruled the TV airwaves, comedy that was very British, simple in nature but still, and some to this day, proved to be extremely popular with audiences. American comedy changed a lot of things however and this particular kind of comedy got lost along the way.
Brendan O’Carroll noticed this and was entirely aware that there is an audience out there that still appreciate this particular kind of comedy. O’Carroll has been on the comedy scene in Ireland for quite a long time now with various comedy shows and appearances on various media outlets but nothing could have prepared him for the success of Mrs. Brown’s Boys, particularly in the UK. O’Carroll put together a pretty simple comedy idea based on some of his older comedy shows and books, an older woman called Mrs. Brown whose husband has passed away but is, of course like every Irish mother, overly involved in the rest of her family’s life.
The film, like the TV series, begins with an introduction from Mrs. Brown except this time she is introducing D’Movie. Mrs. Brown is an independent trader who makes her living by working on the Moore Street markets, a life that she is pretty happy to lead as she gets to be her own boss and hang out with her friends and family all day. The stall she works on has been a part of her family for generations, handed down from mother to daughter, a legacy that Mrs. Brown is pretty proud of. However, her daughter Cathy now has an office job and on top of Mrs. Brown’s fear that the stall will not be passed on to the next generation, it turns out she has a lot more to worry about.
It seems that one of the local politicians in the area has made a deal with a Russian mob, a deal that involves the market stalls of Moore Street and their next target is Mrs. Brown. In order to protect her livelihood and prevent the gang from turning her precious Moore Street into a massive shopping area, Mrs. Brown must prove that she has paid her licence for the stall, a job which is easier said than done.
As mentioned above, Mrs. Brown’s Boys does have an audience but we’re not sure if that’s going to be a new audience who will be won over by the film. The comedy, like Brendan O’Carroll has stressed on many an occasion, is for perhaps an older audience who were attached to a particular kind of comedy that has now virtually disappeared. The gags, for the most part, are not exactly laugh out loud funny but on the other hand, it is extremely difficult to not like the character of Mrs. Brown and not appreciate what Brendan O’Carroll has achieved. He is quite obviously fiercely proud of the country he comes from and of Dublin in particular and that certainly brings its own source of charm. For this reason, it would be difficult to completely write Mrs. Brown’s Boys off just because it doesn’t appeal to certain people.
In terms of performances, O’Carroll is, as usual, brilliant as Mrs.Brown, so brilliant that many English audiences found it incredibly difficult to believe that he is a man. Jennifer Gibney as his daughter, Cathy, also puts in a fine performance while there are also quite a few appearances from various celebrities who would be familiar to Irish audiences.
This isn’t for everyone and some may find it incredibly boring but for the fans and for those who love Mrs. Brown, this will be right up their alley. We would just like Brendan to explain to us if he was on the Quays and had to go to the Four Courts, how exactly did he end up in Dundrum?
