I was obviously interested in watching this for being the nth rendition of the titular cause célèbre and for marking director Landis' return to film-making after a 12-year hiatus from the big screen (at least, his 2 "Masters Of Horror" entries were decidedly above-average) but, for the very same reasons, was rather wary of the prospect!; incidentally, the reviews I had read were quite mixed, so I really could not anticipate what my reaction was going to be: I need not have worried, however, as I generally loved the result!
While the film immediately states that it did not intend to stick to the facts, the whole was handled with assurance (as if Landis had never been away, or that AN American WEREWOLF IN London [1981] – a sure testament to his talent – was not just a distant memory) and, even if the grim subject matter was treated as farce (with the public hangman acting as Chorus, no less!), its period backdrop of 1820s Edimburgh was meticulously re-created; if anything, he certainly cannot say that the United Kingdom has not proved fortuitous for him! Just as the recent (and atypical) vampire flick LET ME IN (2010) saw the welcome resurgence of Britain's House Of Horror, Hammer Films, this is co-produced by the famed Ealing Studios (best-known for a string of comedy classics dating from the late 1940s through to the mid-1950s, including two with similarly macabre overtones as the film under review i.e. KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS [1949] and THE LADYKILLERS [1955], and which had actually closed its doors way back in 1959!).
BURKE AND HARE is very well-cast (Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis display remarkable chemistry throughout; similarly, Tom Wilkinson and Tim Curry's medics provide compelling antagonism). The supporting cast, then, is peppered with stars, including 4 from the afore-mentioned AN American WEREWOLF IN London – David Schofield in a sizeable part, John Woodvine, Jenny Agutter in a blink-and-you'll-miss-her bit, and even d.p. Robert Paynter (incidentally, one is glad they at least had no qualms about working for Landis again after the TWILIGHT ZONE debacle, involving a tragic stunt that claimed the life of actor Vic Morrow). Also on hand are comedian Ronnie Corbett as the dogged militia head, Christopher Lee in a nice eccentric turn as Victim No. 2, stop-motion animation wizard Ray Harryhausen not to mention non-horror directors like Michael Winner and Costa-Gavras!
As I said, the script takes numerous liberties, down to attributing the invention of photography, as well as the setting-up of the funeral-parlor business and the protection racket to these events. The love story between Burke and a young actress gives the film heart (and Isla Fisher is beguiling in the part) – though his self-sacrifice and "I did it for love" declaration at the end comes off as overly-romanticized – just as Hare's relationship with his alcoholic but shrewd wife supplies the requisite lustiness. The best comic moments here generally have to do with the titular duo's clutch of victims or near-victims: the awkward position of the first subject when presented to Dr. Knox, the punchline of the (somewhat clichéd) gag of a barrel 'escaping' down a slope, an impossibly obese man expiring from a heart attack after being assaulted in an alley; plus a drunken man falling a flight of stairs and nonchalantly picking himself up to keep shuffling his way home, and Winner's carriage nose-diving into the river after being diverted by a felled tree.
While the film immediately states that it did not intend to stick to the facts, the whole was handled with assurance (as if Landis had never been away, or that AN American WEREWOLF IN London [1981] – a sure testament to his talent – was not just a distant memory) and, even if the grim subject matter was treated as farce (with the public hangman acting as Chorus, no less!), its period backdrop of 1820s Edimburgh was meticulously re-created; if anything, he certainly cannot say that the United Kingdom has not proved fortuitous for him! Just as the recent (and atypical) vampire flick LET ME IN (2010) saw the welcome resurgence of Britain's House Of Horror, Hammer Films, this is co-produced by the famed Ealing Studios (best-known for a string of comedy classics dating from the late 1940s through to the mid-1950s, including two with similarly macabre overtones as the film under review i.e. KIND HEARTS AND CORONETS [1949] and THE LADYKILLERS [1955], and which had actually closed its doors way back in 1959!).
BURKE AND HARE is very well-cast (Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis display remarkable chemistry throughout; similarly, Tom Wilkinson and Tim Curry's medics provide compelling antagonism). The supporting cast, then, is peppered with stars, including 4 from the afore-mentioned AN American WEREWOLF IN London – David Schofield in a sizeable part, John Woodvine, Jenny Agutter in a blink-and-you'll-miss-her bit, and even d.p. Robert Paynter (incidentally, one is glad they at least had no qualms about working for Landis again after the TWILIGHT ZONE debacle, involving a tragic stunt that claimed the life of actor Vic Morrow). Also on hand are comedian Ronnie Corbett as the dogged militia head, Christopher Lee in a nice eccentric turn as Victim No. 2, stop-motion animation wizard Ray Harryhausen not to mention non-horror directors like Michael Winner and Costa-Gavras!
As I said, the script takes numerous liberties, down to attributing the invention of photography, as well as the setting-up of the funeral-parlor business and the protection racket to these events. The love story between Burke and a young actress gives the film heart (and Isla Fisher is beguiling in the part) – though his self-sacrifice and "I did it for love" declaration at the end comes off as overly-romanticized – just as Hare's relationship with his alcoholic but shrewd wife supplies the requisite lustiness. The best comic moments here generally have to do with the titular duo's clutch of victims or near-victims: the awkward position of the first subject when presented to Dr. Knox, the punchline of the (somewhat clichéd) gag of a barrel 'escaping' down a slope, an impossibly obese man expiring from a heart attack after being assaulted in an alley; plus a drunken man falling a flight of stairs and nonchalantly picking himself up to keep shuffling his way home, and Winner's carriage nose-diving into the river after being diverted by a felled tree.