The BBC comedy classic transfers to the big screen -but does it work as well as the original television series?
Variety.com: Catherine Bray wrote: “Amiable to a fault, with gags both broad and gentle, Oliver Parker’s pic prompts sporadic chuckles rather than guffaws.”
The Guardian: ** Peter Bradshaw felt that: ” it’s hard to escape the sinking feeling that this is a waste of talent – and that this is a good-natured, well-meaning but pointless kind of Brit-comedy ancestor worship, paying elaborate homage to a TV show that got it right the first time.”
The Telegraph: ** Robbie Collin said: “Dad’s Army bleakly suggests that even the best source material in the world can only take you so far.”
Radio Times: ***Mark Braxton said: “the film slowly warms to its task of celebrating a very British institution, with some genuine peril in the third reel.”
The Hollywood Reporter:Stephen Dalton found it: “flat-footed, uninspired big-screen reboot.”
The Independent: ***** Sean o’Grady gave the film high praise saying: “This celebration of Dad’s Army surpasses the original.”
The Mirror: * David Edwards wrote: “This all-out assault on Britain’s comedy crown jewels contains all the humour of a V2 rocket attack.”
Screen Daily:Wendy Ide commented: “Fittingly for a film which has a running joke about jam roly poly, this feels like cinematic comfort food.”
Time Out: ** Cath Clarke called it: “this pointless remake of the wartime comedy.”
Overall verdict: a mixed bag film that perhaps feels dated in terms of the humour but held together by a strong cast – who soldier on no matter what.
Dad’s Army is released in cinemas on 5th February. But if it isn’t for you then how about revisiting the original television series with the ultimate box set available on Amazon.