Cemetery Junction
Written and Directed by: Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant
Starring: Christian Cooke, Tom Hughes, Jack Doolan, Matthew Goode, Emily Watson, Ralph Fiennes and Ricky Gervais
Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant are the successful duo behind hit comedy TV series The Office and Extras. Cemetery Junction marks their first feature film together and given the pedigree of their former work there is huge expectation behind this. Have Gervais and Merchant been able to take their talents to the big screen?
Yes they have, Cemetery Junction works as both a comedy and a drama. It has genuine laugh out loud moments as well as simple, poignant and emotional dramatic beats. It has a superb cast, great soundtrack and is easily one of the best films of the year.
What is it that makes Cemetery Junction so good? While the plot may seem clichéd and predicable at the outset (small town guy, looking for that big promotion, wants a better life, in love with the bosses daughter etc.) Cemetery Junction does such a great job at making the characters and the world they inhabit so real and likeable that it never feels like your typical, predictable and clichéd film. Cemetery Junction does a lot of things that a lot of films try to do and fail. A lot of comedies try to include dramatic elements which most of the time come off as forced and poorly done. However in Cemetery Junction Gervais and Merchant have perfectly balanced comedy and drama, with neither elements clashing or upstaging the other.
One scene, which showcases all the brilliance of Gervais and Merchant, and of this film, is a scene at a work party. It has brilliant comedy moments (The Stephen Merchant cameo) as well as an emotional, poignant, simple yet effective scene all focusing on somebody receiving a fruit bowl.
Cemetery Junction is set in a 1970s England and despite the fact it has been glamorized by nostalgia (something Gervais admits to) it always feels real and the costume and set designers have done a great job of very much setting it, in that time period. The acting in the film is flawless all around with a cast that mixes fresh new talent with some kings of the trade. The three leads in Cooke, Hughes and Doolan all give great performances and are all really likeable and engaging. Freddie, Bruce and Snork are the three guys who have been friends for life, making that appear so in films isn’t an easy thing to do and can sometimes seem over the top (The Expendables) but you really believe that these three have been friends their whole lives thanks to brilliant performances and great writing.
Ralph Fiennes and Matthew Goode are both brilliant as the subtle, almost “villains” of the piece, with Fiennes pulling off the strict, slimy boss feel with ease. Emily Watson is also brilliant in her small role, with her facial expressions telling a story that a thousand words could not. Ricky Gervais provides great comic relief in his small scenes and does not by any means overshadow the rest, or take away from the feel of the film, with it being very personal to his upbringing.
Overall Cemetery Junction is a funny, heart warming, charming and emotional film, with great performances, a brilliant soundtrack, memorable scenes which go through all the emotions of excitement, anger, humour, drama and happiness and a brilliant cinematic debut for the Gervais and Merchant partnership. Cemetery Junction is a film that can stand up with their television work as well as towering above most of the films released this year.
One Sentence Summary: Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant take their magic to the big screen with a funny, dramatic and charming film.
8/10
By Michael Dalton
Yes they have, Cemetery Junction works as both a comedy and a drama. It has genuine laugh out loud moments as well as simple, poignant and emotional dramatic beats. It has a superb cast, great soundtrack and is easily one of the best films of the year.
What is it that makes Cemetery Junction so good? While the plot may seem clichéd and predicable at the outset (small town guy, looking for that big promotion, wants a better life, in love with the bosses daughter etc.) Cemetery Junction does such a great job at making the characters and the world they inhabit so real and likeable that it never feels like your typical, predictable and clichéd film. Cemetery Junction does a lot of things that a lot of films try to do and fail. A lot of comedies try to include dramatic elements which most of the time come off as forced and poorly done. However in Cemetery Junction Gervais and Merchant have perfectly balanced comedy and drama, with neither elements clashing or upstaging the other.
One scene, which showcases all the brilliance of Gervais and Merchant, and of this film, is a scene at a work party. It has brilliant comedy moments (The Stephen Merchant cameo) as well as an emotional, poignant, simple yet effective scene all focusing on somebody receiving a fruit bowl.
Cemetery Junction is set in a 1970s England and despite the fact it has been glamorized by nostalgia (something Gervais admits to) it always feels real and the costume and set designers have done a great job of very much setting it, in that time period. The acting in the film is flawless all around with a cast that mixes fresh new talent with some kings of the trade. The three leads in Cooke, Hughes and Doolan all give great performances and are all really likeable and engaging. Freddie, Bruce and Snork are the three guys who have been friends for life, making that appear so in films isn’t an easy thing to do and can sometimes seem over the top (The Expendables) but you really believe that these three have been friends their whole lives thanks to brilliant performances and great writing.
Ralph Fiennes and Matthew Goode are both brilliant as the subtle, almost “villains” of the piece, with Fiennes pulling off the strict, slimy boss feel with ease. Emily Watson is also brilliant in her small role, with her facial expressions telling a story that a thousand words could not. Ricky Gervais provides great comic relief in his small scenes and does not by any means overshadow the rest, or take away from the feel of the film, with it being very personal to his upbringing.
Overall Cemetery Junction is a funny, heart warming, charming and emotional film, with great performances, a brilliant soundtrack, memorable scenes which go through all the emotions of excitement, anger, humour, drama and happiness and a brilliant cinematic debut for the Gervais and Merchant partnership. Cemetery Junction is a film that can stand up with their television work as well as towering above most of the films released this year.
One Sentence Summary: Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant take their magic to the big screen with a funny, dramatic and charming film.
8/10
By Michael Dalton
This trailer was taken from: “Cemetery Junction” trailer – At UK Cinemas 14 April 2010 (Video). February 02, 2010. Retrieved September 5, 2010 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XYDeHIszUqA