Film review: 'Kevin and Perry'
With more erection jokes than "American Pie" and more shagging references than "Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me," no one will ever accuse "Kevin and Perry Go Large" of being a subtle comedy of manners.
Its wonderfully broad British humor is, in fact, crude, rude, embarrassing -- and often downright hilarious. The film promises to be a bit of a hit in the United Kingdom -- it grossed a smash $3.2 million in its opening last weekend, toppling "Pokemon the First Movie" from the No. 1 slot -- though how overseas audiences will react remains to be seen. (Icon Entertainment International is handling international sales.)
Kevin and Perry are well-known to English audiences from TV's "The Harry Enfield Show" as hormonally challenged teenagers who are desperately uncool and desperate to lose their virginity. What makes them rather unusual is that Kevin is played by Enfield, a thirtysomething comedian, while best pal Perry is played by Kathy Burke, who won the best actress award at Cannes for her role in "Nil by Mouth".
These are two typically grungy teens -- rude and angry with parents who don't understand them, obsessed with girls who ignore them and blessed with no dress sense and plenty of spots. As a rule, Kevin and Perry usually get about 10 minutes airtime on "The Harry Enfield Show". But in this expanded film format, there is a chance for them to really let loose.
The concept is familiar to any fan of "American Pie" or nearly any angst-ridden teen comedy: They need to stamp their mark on the world via their deejay skills and lose their virginity along the way. To accomplish these feats, the duo decides to go to the Spanish holiday island of Ibiza, where it is wellknown that "the deejay reigns supreme and the girls will shag anyone."
The first third of the film sees Kevin and Perry trying to raise money for the trip. This is achieved while in a bank trying to use Kevin's father's credit card. A robber holds up the bank and tells the pair to sit down at a table. Kevin gets sidetracked staring at the breasts of the bank teller, and his erection sets off the under-table emergency alarm. An indication of things to come.
Kevin's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Patterson (James Fleet and Louisa Rix), offer to take the boys to Ibiza. The pair reluctantly agree but spend the money they have been awarded for foiling the robbery on top gear (a k a cool clothing) and a suitcase full of condoms.
Whether hiding erections in the sand, crashing scooters or urinating (and worse) in the sea, these two stand no chance. Eventually, they meet the top deejay, Eye Ball Paul Rhys Ifans), who gets them into the cool club but just makes fun of them.
The pair do meet the girls of their dreams (Laura Fraser and Tabitha Wady, who initially out-grunge even Kevin and Perry); they do get to spin their records at the top club; and yes, they do lose their virginity.
In their big-screen versions, Kevin and Perry aren't quite as spotty as they are on TV, but the writing of Enfield and David Cummings manages to capture (with great humor) the anger and angst of a teen.
Enfield is great as the troubled Kevin struggling to make that teenage transition. Even better, though, is Burke as the genial Perry, who will follow his best pal anywhere and also quite fancies Mrs. Patterson. Burke is one of the great British talents of the moment, at ease in high drama as she is in broad comedy.
Director Ed Bye does a fine job easing the transition of small-screen characters onto the big screen, and the Ibiza sequences -- especially in the nightclub -- are especially good. Costumes by Denise Simmons are spot on, and all other technical credits are very good.
KEVIN AND PERRY GO LARGE
Tiger Aspect Pictures in association with Icon Prods.
and Fragile Films
Producers: Peter Bennett-Jones,
Jolyon Symods, Harry Enfield
Director: Ed Bye
Screenwriters: Harry Enfield, David Cummings
Executive producers: Bruce Davey,
Ralph Kamp, Barnaby Thompson
Director of photography: Alan Almond
Production designer: Tom Brown
Editor: Mark Wybourn
Costume designer: Denise Simmons
Color/stereo
Cast:
Kevin: Harry Enfield
Perry: Kathy Burke
Eye Ball Paul: Rhys Ifans
Candice: Laura Fraser
Mr. Patterson: James Fleet
Mrs. Patterson: Louisa Rix
Gemma: Tabitha Wady
Bouncer: Paul Whitehouse
Running time -- 82 minutes
No MPAA rating...
Its wonderfully broad British humor is, in fact, crude, rude, embarrassing -- and often downright hilarious. The film promises to be a bit of a hit in the United Kingdom -- it grossed a smash $3.2 million in its opening last weekend, toppling "Pokemon the First Movie" from the No. 1 slot -- though how overseas audiences will react remains to be seen. (Icon Entertainment International is handling international sales.)
Kevin and Perry are well-known to English audiences from TV's "The Harry Enfield Show" as hormonally challenged teenagers who are desperately uncool and desperate to lose their virginity. What makes them rather unusual is that Kevin is played by Enfield, a thirtysomething comedian, while best pal Perry is played by Kathy Burke, who won the best actress award at Cannes for her role in "Nil by Mouth".
These are two typically grungy teens -- rude and angry with parents who don't understand them, obsessed with girls who ignore them and blessed with no dress sense and plenty of spots. As a rule, Kevin and Perry usually get about 10 minutes airtime on "The Harry Enfield Show". But in this expanded film format, there is a chance for them to really let loose.
The concept is familiar to any fan of "American Pie" or nearly any angst-ridden teen comedy: They need to stamp their mark on the world via their deejay skills and lose their virginity along the way. To accomplish these feats, the duo decides to go to the Spanish holiday island of Ibiza, where it is wellknown that "the deejay reigns supreme and the girls will shag anyone."
The first third of the film sees Kevin and Perry trying to raise money for the trip. This is achieved while in a bank trying to use Kevin's father's credit card. A robber holds up the bank and tells the pair to sit down at a table. Kevin gets sidetracked staring at the breasts of the bank teller, and his erection sets off the under-table emergency alarm. An indication of things to come.
Kevin's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Patterson (James Fleet and Louisa Rix), offer to take the boys to Ibiza. The pair reluctantly agree but spend the money they have been awarded for foiling the robbery on top gear (a k a cool clothing) and a suitcase full of condoms.
Whether hiding erections in the sand, crashing scooters or urinating (and worse) in the sea, these two stand no chance. Eventually, they meet the top deejay, Eye Ball Paul Rhys Ifans), who gets them into the cool club but just makes fun of them.
The pair do meet the girls of their dreams (Laura Fraser and Tabitha Wady, who initially out-grunge even Kevin and Perry); they do get to spin their records at the top club; and yes, they do lose their virginity.
In their big-screen versions, Kevin and Perry aren't quite as spotty as they are on TV, but the writing of Enfield and David Cummings manages to capture (with great humor) the anger and angst of a teen.
Enfield is great as the troubled Kevin struggling to make that teenage transition. Even better, though, is Burke as the genial Perry, who will follow his best pal anywhere and also quite fancies Mrs. Patterson. Burke is one of the great British talents of the moment, at ease in high drama as she is in broad comedy.
Director Ed Bye does a fine job easing the transition of small-screen characters onto the big screen, and the Ibiza sequences -- especially in the nightclub -- are especially good. Costumes by Denise Simmons are spot on, and all other technical credits are very good.
KEVIN AND PERRY GO LARGE
Tiger Aspect Pictures in association with Icon Prods.
and Fragile Films
Producers: Peter Bennett-Jones,
Jolyon Symods, Harry Enfield
Director: Ed Bye
Screenwriters: Harry Enfield, David Cummings
Executive producers: Bruce Davey,
Ralph Kamp, Barnaby Thompson
Director of photography: Alan Almond
Production designer: Tom Brown
Editor: Mark Wybourn
Costume designer: Denise Simmons
Color/stereo
Cast:
Kevin: Harry Enfield
Perry: Kathy Burke
Eye Ball Paul: Rhys Ifans
Candice: Laura Fraser
Mr. Patterson: James Fleet
Mrs. Patterson: Louisa Rix
Gemma: Tabitha Wady
Bouncer: Paul Whitehouse
Running time -- 82 minutes
No MPAA rating...
- 4/27/2000
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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