Going Postal (2010) User Reviews

A few things to hate, So Many things to love!

[Sevenixx · 8/10 · 13 June 2010]

First off, This is the third film based on Terry Pratchett Discworld and if you have seen the previous films you know they lacked in quite many areas.

As it happens to be, the moment I started reading Going Postal(the book) I thought for myself "This would make a really great movie!".

Why? you ask and I answer Good story that is easy to follow without any previous knowledge of Discworld. Small amount of magic and special effects that would require a 100 Million budget to make decent. This is where the previous movie Color of Magic went wrong.

So as it came to my knowledge Going Postal was the next movie to be made I felt quite happy, perhaps this would be the time when they got it all right?

Now that I've seen the result I must say that it was in fact, quite awesome! This is far much better than the mediocre Color of Magic adaptation, and it even goes ahead and surpasses the first movie Hoghfather.

There are a few things to hate about Going Postal though, and I believe these are the reasons some people absolutely hate this movie. I believe what all this is about is the use of Cinematic Freedom. First, Angua has been totally removed use some cinematic freedom and replaced with a "posh blond pale looking I'm not afraid to transform to a werewolf anywhere" girl, which many fans probably hate, I myself hate it as well. And even then they had to go ahead and make a wolf animation of her, the type of crappy animations I was hoping wouldn't be required in Going Postal!

Second thing to hate about the movie is the Banshee, seriously, it's the most silly piece of outfit ever seen! If you cant make a good banshee with wings, then use some of that cinematic freedom and just make him normal man dressed in black with some black smoke around him! As it turns out the banshee is the single most disturbing thing about this movie since everything else adds to an atmosphere that the Discworld is actually real. The moment this guy enters flailing his paper wings and screaming the whole atmosphere takes a big dip.

So now you ask, if the movie is so bad why did you rate it so high? Its quite simple really, because of the two things I just discussed. Because even if those 2 details could have been done A LOT better, there is the whole rest of the movie, and this is a movie that has great acting, great story, great atmosphere, great characters and not to forget Great Entertainment Value!

Going Postal is by far the best Discworld movie as of yet and if you are only able to see past the few bad drops in the bucket filled with greatness, Im sure you will come to the same conclusion as me.

Best out of the three adaptions

[lordman · 9/10 · 22 October 2010]

I must admit that I am quite surprised about the negative feedback the third movie based on Pratchett's works has received. There are many reasons for my surprise, which I will introduce in the following short review.

Going Postal is a story about a master con-artist who faces the gallows but it given a second shot at life as master of Ankh Morpork's run-down post office. To save the post (i.e. his own life) and win over the principled Golem-rights-activist Adora Dearheart, he has to employ all his conman wit to beat the owner of the telegraph-like "Clacks" in a business race evoking industrial-age competitions like that between Westinghouse and Edison, where showmanship and publicity were far more important than the actual product.

Talking about the product, this movie is well-acted and well-presented. It is based on one of Pratchett's newer stories and evokes a more urban industrial Steampunk feel than its Fantasy (Colour of Magic) and Faerie Tale-based (Hogfather) predecessors.

Still, for a friend of solid acting, solid backdrops, and more substance than metaphor, this may qualify as the best of the bunch.

Someone pointed out that the film lacked the "magic" of the other adaptions. This is all but true, yet, the lack of a fairy-tale air allows the narrative to flow much better. This time, you know precisely what you are looking at. After the somewhat confused and heavily-altered adaption of Colour of Magic, it is a relief to see a certain solid quality in terms of serious movie features returning to the series.

Let's face it: a TV-based production never does well when it relies on special effects more than it does on good actors, a decent script and solid direction. This was a mistake all too obvious in Colour of Magic, and is one not repeated here. Certainly, the visuals still to a perfect job at bringing Discworld to life, mostly due to the enormous attention given to them. However, they never feel overtaxed with their task, which makes it easier to suspend your disbelief in this adaption than in the other ones.

Of course, the movie is not for everyone. Especially those expecting a fantasy-fest will be sorely disappointed. This is fantasy only in the broadest sense, i.e. it takes place in a world quite fantastic and (maybe not quite to) unlike out own. If one wanted to exaggerate, it is - as Discworld always was - to fantasy what Daybreakers is to vampire fiction - a satiric subversion of the tropes.

It should be noted that the film is staffed mainly with rather less known actors - and this is a good thing. Although one might miss the presence of the likes of Tim Curry, Jeremy Irons and even Sean Astin, these are not exactly C-list actors either. You will be surprised how many of them you have seen before. I have graded some of the initial performances below. Please note that the 9 is not an average but a measure of the entire film relating to other reviews.

Plot: 10/10 - The best adaption yet, the changes within which are less noticeable than in Colour or Hogfather. Visuals: 7/10 - Clearly a TV production, but made with love. Not in over its head, unlike the previous adaptions. Special kudos for the sets (even though there is much subtle CGI involved), which are beautiful. Audio: 8/10 - More subtle, fitting. Certainly did not have a huge budget, but everything fits.

Richard Coyle as Moist: 8/10 - I was skeptical at first, but Richard Coyle makes for an energetic and sharp-witted scoundrel. An excellent fit for Moist Von Lipwick.

Claire Foy as Adora Belle Dearheart: 7/10 - She plays the role very much to the expected degree, and while her on-screen chemistry with Coyle is great, her performance is a bit too much "by-the-book" for my taste. Still, Claire Foy displays a lot of charisma; a more courageous performance might have been in order, though.

David Suchet as Reacher Gilt: 5/10 - Suchet plays Gilt very much as a commedia dell arte "scaramuccio", the scheming, conniving, but ultimately inept villain, always with a top hat and twirl-worthy beard. Oh, and the eyepatch. This is actually precisely what the role demands and he delivers. Still, there is not crowning moment in his performance, he just "gets it done", which is a pity given that his character is the only one standing up to Lord Vetinari.

Charles Dance as Vetinari: 7/10 - Charles Dance is not Jeremy Irons, that is for certain. It is also for the better, as Irons' performance in Colour, while memorable, was also very much unbearable on the longer run. Good thing it was so brief. Dance does a solid job, and gives Vetinari a very human, while inhumanly competent, face.

Steve Pemberton as Drumknott: 10/10 - I have singled out Pemberton as Drumknott because it is hard not to like his take on the character. Drumknott may just be Vetinari's right-hand-man and therefore destined to an existence as living piece of backdrop, but Pemberton really gives the devout assistant a depth which, I believe, is quite true to the spirit in which the character was conceived. He is not a footstool, although trained as one, and actually immensely able when tasked. However, he does not show this openly but rather gives subtle hints at his capability. Of course, this is (probably) not in the script, but mainly conveyed through Pemberton's acting. He nailed this part.

All in all, if the Sky1-Productions continue in this vein, we will not have to fear another disappointment like Colour. Expensive actors a good movie do not make. Great overall style and love and care, that's more like it.

Excellent adaptation

[jsimonbennett · 9/10 · 31 May 2010]

Of the three Sky adaptations of Pratchett's discworld novels this is by far the best. The storyline is true to the book although,as with the other two discworld films, since the history has not been covered by previous stories, more explanation is required which can get in the way of the plot on occasion.

Clair Foy's Adora Belle Dearheart is a little too jovial and Charles Dance is not quite menacing enough as the Patrician. Nonetheless the performances are very good and certainly believable enough for a fantasy world.

Sir Terry's influence on the script is obvious and the Post Office building is magnificent in it's conception.

If Sky can keep this up then I look forward to adaptations of the witches and watch novels with eager anticipation.

This movie truly brings the book to life!

[ithyl · 10/10 · 25 January 2012]

Those who haven't discovered Terry Pratchett's brilliantly funny novels have a treat in store. Most of them are set in an alternate universe, upon a flat world that travels through space on the shoulders of four elephants that stand on the shell of the great Atuin, a huge turtle. Despite the fact that the Discworld is so fundamentally different from our own and his characters so fantastic, you will see yourselves, the conventions and concerns of your own world, reflected in surprising, hysterically funny, and entirely entertaining ways.

Going Postal is the story of a con man who, when his cons catch up to him, is faced with the choice of re-opening the derelict post office or dying a painful death. As he reluctantly takes up his post he is faced with the unintended consequences of his crimes and soon finds himself, with his engagingly unbalanced staff, committed to saving the post office, bringing Reacher Gilt, evil owner of the clacks system (rather like the internet without electricity) to justice, and winning the heart of Adora Bell Dearheart.

I've seen all of the Discworld movies and mini-series and enjoyed them ... The Hogfather was great, and The Color of Magic was wonderful,(although I felt Vetenari was a bit too much a comic figure in that one), but Going Postal is nearly perfect! Though I didn't envision the patrician as ginger-haired, it made no difference because Charles Dance absolutely IS Vetinari. The rest of the cast Richard Coyle as Moist Von Lipwig, Claire Foy as Adora Belle Dearheart, David Suchet as Reacher Gilt, Andrew Sachs as Groat and Ian Bonar as Stanley, all are fantastic. Even the Golems are just as I thought they should be! Going Postal is a must-see for any Terry Pratchett fan.

So far, the best of the Sky/Pratchett adaptations

[TheLittleSongbird · 9/10 · 20 February 2011]

I did like Hogfather and Colour of Magic too, but what made me like Going Postal best of all was that it was more solid in especially the story, pacing and acting departments. Not that the other two were bad in those categories, but they did have characters that weren't explored as well as they could have been or there were moments of sluggish pacing or forced dialogue.

Going Postal could have easily had those problems but it didn't really. Of all the Sky/Pratchett adaptations it is the best paced overall, while the story even with the changes is compelling and the writing is playful and witty on the whole.

The costumes are colourful and beautiful, and the sets and scenery are also stunning and the effects in general are above average though I wasn't crazy about the Banshee. The photography does very well to capture these lovely visuals, while the music is very good and the direction credible enough.

The cast I feel is the best yet. Charles Dance, Richard Coyle and Steve Pemberton turn in great performances, and Claire Foy is also appealing and David Suchet is an interesting Gilt.

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed it, and while I liked all three Sky/Pratchett adaptations this one was the best. 9/10 Bethany Cox

I liked it

[waygarn · 24 September 2010]

Perhaps I lack sophistication but I liked it.

It's been so long since I read the book that the details were fuzzy to me but as with the other two adaptations I can live with the changes. To do faithful film versions would require making mini-series of them.

I didn't expect a high budget production and expected to see changes, partly to make sense in the allotted time and partly to appeal to a broader audience.

As for the uninitiated, I'd think that those who liked it will like the book better and those who don't probably wouldn't like the book either.

Even with all the flaws in the movies I hope to see other of T. Pratchett's books adapted to film. I'm rooting for "Night Watch" as the next one.

Big fan of Pratchett books reviews the movie

[elessardunedain · 7/10 · 9 February 2013]

I'm a big fan of Terry Pratchett novels. I've read about thirty of them and I love them. "Going Postal" was among my favorites.

The film renders the plot quite faithfully most of the time. Most of the characters are very similar to their novel counterparts. Richard Coyle (whom you may know from TV comedy show "Coupling") does a very good performance as Moist von Lipwig, the new postmaster and Charles Dance (the doctor from "Alien 3") is fantastic as lord Havelock Vetinari.

You haven't read the book? You get a decent comedy with many funny quips and one liners. There is some fantasy (fantastic creatures like werewolf, banshee and golems) and some magic, but most of the plot revolves around humans and their emotions: love, hate, greed, vengeance. The story is about the Post Office of Ankh Morpork. People have forgotten about Post Office in times of "Clacks" (something like telegraphy). But there are some who want Post Office running again and a lifelong conman Moist von Lipwig is conned into trying to run it.

Of course the movie misses many of the novels subtle humorous details, but is fun enough to watch.

A Discworld that resembles Discworld?

[raforehand · 8/10 · 5 January 2021]

To be frank and honest, I have this on DVD and have watched multiple times as the Moist Von Lipwig focused stories are some of my favorites from the Discworld series, and the production from Sky gets enough right in adapting the story while still making changes to adapt the work for the small screen. Additionally, I felt compelled to write this review after attempting to watch the newly premiered "The Watch" from BBC America. While that abomination only has some names and plot points shared, this adaptation at least retains the right spirit and feel, there's a joyfulness and humour to the characters and their motivations that is completely absent from the new Watch adaptation. And while changes have been made, the overall story retains the right plot beats and characters, while not book accurate in some cases, still at least resemble their characters.

One stand out in mind is Charles Dance, his performance as Vetinari, the Patrician of Anhk-Morpork, is nearly a perfect match to how I envisioned the character while reading the books, exhibiting the right amount of menace and charm while equally being able to show the slight glimpses into the many depths of the character that are offered throughout the whole book series.

Andrew Sachs also did an excellent job as the most senior junior Postman, Tolliver Groat. David Suchet wasn't quite what I had imagined for Teacher Gilt, but he did a most admirable job in the role. Richard Coyle and Claire Foy play the leads quite well as Moist Von Lipwig and Adora Belle Dear heart, and they certainly look the part and have good chemistry. I was not completely on board with some of the changes made to their characterization, but accept the choices made because in the end the whole still resembles the intent of the source material.

I also did mostly like the Golems and their portrayal here, while understandably that is tricky. I would have preferred them seeming more amorphous and closer to lumpy gingerbread men in appearance, but the end effort still look like men of clay.

All in all, if you want a good entry point to introduce you to the spirit of the Discworld and get a taste of Sir Terry Pratchett's wit and imagination, this adaptation is probably the ideal place to start if you don't want to dive headfirst into the novels to start with.

Imaginative and fun

[mikeburdick · 7/10 · 4 September 2015]

If you enjoy getting absorbed in fantastic worlds, like Harry Potter, then "Going Postal" should definitely be on your list. Adapted from a Terry Pratchett novel, it's imaginative, humorous and highly entertaining.

Despite being made on a budget as a miniseries for telly, "Postal" has big-budget cinematic feel and probably could have been released in theatres. The costumes, set design and art direction are particularly outstanding. And rather than rely on big budget effects, they got rather inventive with practical effects, such as the Golems.

There's also some tremendous acting from veterans like David Suchet and Charles Dance, and a great cast of comedic actors, like Tamsin Greig from "Black Books" and Andrew Sachs (aka Manuel from "Fawlty Towers").

There are little niggles, such as the unconvincing chemistry between the two leads, but overall, "Going Postal" is well worth a watch, especially if you have kids, meaning 11 or 12+. It does get pretty dark in a couple spots, but mostly lighthearted and fun.

Not all it could have been, but still a very entertaining 3 hours.

[suza-lilli · 8/10 · 22 August 2010]

I've only come to the Discworld fairly recently and 'Going Postal' was the first book I read. I've found it one of the most enjoyable books in the series, and Moist Von Lipwig is by far and away my favourite character. So I had a vested interest in this, Sky's third adaptation of a Terry Pratchett novel.

After the first episode aired, I was in raptures. It was well filmed, the script was good, it had remained fairly faithful to the plot and it appeared to be well cast (although all the way through I expected Richard Coyle to jump into the TARDIS as there's something very Doctor Who-ish about his performance. And I thought Adora Belle Dearheart wasn't written very well at all). The second episode, however, was very disappointing. It seemed that the writers had read half of 'Going Postal' and then left their copy on the bus so had to resort to making the end of the story up. I cannot understand why they would change it so drastically. There's artistic license, and then there's sheer stupidity.

I guess we cannot expect any better from the writers. For a screenplay to be 100% true to the book, Pratchett would have to write it himself and now that's never going to happen. I would have liked to have seen them have a crack at 'Making Money' but their ending of 'Going Postal' hardly segues smoothly into the following book.

I prefer 'Hogfather', but 'Going Postal' is still very entertaining. You just have to try to forget ever having read the book.

Probably deserved better

[doggydog2312 · 6/10 · 19 April 2011]

So one of better recent Terry Pratchett books get converted into a miniseries/3 hours movie? As a huge Pratchett fan I should be thrilled... or should I? I'll try to keep it short. Basically, they did a more or less good job of making a random Victorianoid adventure movie with light fantasy elements. They failed at making a Discworld movie.

Ankh Morpork simply isn't Ankh Morpork. Not just for the lack of dwarfs and trolls. It misses nearly all the elements that make it special. It could be nearly anywhere.

Acting was generally good, with some really good performances to lift everything to a higher level, and casting was generally good as well. There are exceptions to both though.

The costumes? Unsure on the golems, but the vampire and the banshee are just silly.

Too many liberties have been taken with the script, Pratchett's legendary humour is rarely well replicated. The movie even gets slightly shoddy at some times (obvious unpolished cuts).

I'm sure that the budget wasn't brilliant and the movie has its' own merits - it's highly approachable by those who don't know anything about Discworld. But for a fan, it'll be a disappointment on more than one level.

Much better than I expected

[MrVanilla · 8/10 · 7 March 2014]

People talk about the phenomenon of binge TV watching. I've been binge reading all of the Discworld books, all of which are on my shelf. That makes the second or third (or at least one fourth) time through. I had only seen the terrible "Color of Magic" and the worse "Hogfather" before, so had low expectations for this.

Going Postal is true to the "look and feel" of the book. Of course, it doesn't stick to the plot, word for word. Of course, many of the characters are two dimensional. But then, the movie is made from pictures and the books are made from words. And words have power.

It was a joy to watch. My wife didn't enjoy it nearly as much as I did, but that was probably because I kept telling her the difference between the book and the movie. And pointing out the similarity ("Honey, did you notice the vampire photographer? That's great, he really didn't add to the movie story line, but in the Discworld series...." And we're still married.

Spoiler: Viewers should be aware that the movie pays homage to old time movies in a couple of ways. One controversial way is to make the banshee into a replica of Nosferatu. I think this was a misstep, but a minor and intriguing one.

Disappointing

[itamarscomix · 6/10 · 24 September 2012]

Going Postal may be, as many people seem to think, the most accurate of the three live-action Discworld adaptations done so far - but what does it matter, when the book it's adapted from is one of the weakest in the series? Going Postal is, by any measure, a well-made and watchable TV movie - it has some good jokes, solid pacing, a few good performances (always great to see Andrew Sachs in action again) - but nothing about it has the unique flair and insanity of the Discworld novels. A couple of characters familiar to fans make an appearance - like Angua and Mustrum Ridcully - but they have none of the depth and personality of their book counterparts. Lord Vetinari is the only possible exception - Charles Dance is a natural choice for the part, and he does fantastically well.

Going Postal, like so many Discworld novels, is about the Discworld equivalent of a real-world phenomena, this time - mail. But that same basic premise had been used in many other Discworld novels to funnier results - I'd much rather see a TV adaptation of Moving Pictures or The Truth. Even more than that, I'd rather have Sky stick to the earlier classics in the series, to the dry nonsensical humor that made them classics, and to beloved characters who made the series great, back when it was a fantasy series. Going Postal is watchable, but anybody who doesn't know anything about Discworld probably won't get what the fuss is all about, and I'd much sooner recommend Hogfather as a starting point.

Better than "The Colour of Magic" but worse than "Hogfather" (Updated)

[SoWhy · 5/10 · 31 May 2010]

SkyOne has tried to tackle the very difficult task of creating a movie based on Terry Pratchett's fantastic universe once again with it's third movie, "Going Postal". Just like those two before it, "The Colour of Magic" and "Hogfather", this title seems randomly picked from the list of Discworld novels - their first movie was based on the 20th, the second on the 1st and 2nd (unsuccessfully trying to merge them into one), this one on the 33rd. While "Hogfather" was a brilliant adaption, with characters and scenes true to the book and a great atmosphere, "The Colour of Magic" was influenced by a terrible arrogance. After having made a near-perfect adaption (as perfect as possible at least) with "Hogfather", "The Colour of Magic" changed a great many things from the books it was allegedly based one: The main character was 40 years older, the plot changed, they tried to cast people who were famous rather than those who fitted the book and they tried to combine two novels into one movie. And the end result was, predictably, very bad, at least if you had read the books before it.

"Going Postal" seems to rectify some of the last adaption's mistakes. The scenery looks much more like it's described in the book and many of the secondary characters are indeed based on the book - with the exception of the main character, Moist von Lipwig, unfortunately. While I do like Richard Coyle, he, as a 38-year-old, cannot convincingly play a character who should be in his mid-20s. And of course a number of changes were made from the book, some irrelevant and partly creative (like the B/W sequences depicting his crimes) and some relevant and stupid (like having Adora ride with him, Angua in the beginning, meeting Reacher Gilt so soon etc.) because they were different precisely to make the story work.

One can hope for further adaptations of Pratchett's works nonetheless and possibly SkyOne will avoid unnecessary changes in their next adaption (we can only hope it's "Night Watch" :-)) and stay true to the book where possible. Still, "Going Postal" is an enjoyable adaption of one of the (imho) best books by Terry Pratchett, despite some changes that will annoy someone who already read the book.

Update: It seems I spoke too soon. When I wrote the review, it was after viewing part 1. Unfortunately, part 2 managed to be much more like "The Colour of Magic" than "Hogfather". Vital, important parts of the plot were either removed or changed (Vetinari keeps the money; Offler was the god who allegedly provided it; Moist chose the message rather than Ridcully - although it was vital to the plot that the wizard did so (because it had many pictures); Adora giving up smoking; etc.) and frankly ridiculous story lines and changes were added (Gilt is now, as a fellow reviewer wrote, more of a James Bond supervillian wannabe rather than a con man like Moist - even to the point of killing Horsefry himself; the overly dramatic scene on the tower at the end; the soppy speech at the end and the "rescue"; etc.)

So I have to revise my initial conclusion, it's far worse than "Hogfather" (9/10) while still being better than "The Colour of Magic" (2/10): 5/10. Hopefully future SkyOne adaptions will rectify those problems.

A conman is made to run the Ankh-Morpork Post Office.

[Tweekums · 8/10 · 7 January 2017]

From an early age Moist von Lipwig made a living by conning others out of theirs; ultimately he is caught in the city of Ankh-Morpork and sentenced to hang. He survives the hanging and finds himself being given a choice by Lord Vetinari, the city's patrician, he can either be executed again or take over the running of the city's failing post office. Not surprisingly he chooses the latter. When he gets to the Post Office he soon thinks he has been given an impossible task; there are years' worth of letters stacked everywhere and all recent post masters have met with untimely deaths. He is a quick thinker and soon starts to get the service working again… much to the annoyance of Reacher Gilt, the owner of the 'Clacks'; a system of sending messages via semaphore, who doesn't want any rivals. It becomes apparent that Gilt isn't above murder eliminate the competition. Moist von Lipwig will have to be particularly clever and get the help of Adora Belle Dearheart, whose family invented the clacks but were conned out of its ownership, if he is to keep the post office open and avoid being hanged again.

I enjoyed this adaption of Terry Pratchett's book; I haven't read it yet but have read others featuring many of the characters including 'Making Money' which is also centred on Moist von Lipwig. I thought Richard Coyle did a really good job bringing the character to life. Charles Dance was suitably imposing as Lord Vetinari and Claire Foy impressed as Adora. I was less sure about David Suchet's performance as Gilt; it had a bit too much of the pantomime villain for my tastes. Ankh-Morpork was portrayed well enough although I imagined it to be more threatening with narrower streets and intimidating characters lurking in the shadows. There were plenty of things to enjoy about the production; I liked how the Clacks where depicted and the appearance of various characters who have small parts here but are more important in other Disc World novels; notably Sergeant Angua, the werewolf in the Watch. Overall I rather enjoyed this and would recommend it to people who have enjoyed the Disc World books.

Books must be treated with respect, we feel that in our bones, because words have power. Bring enough words together they can bend space and time.

[Bored_Dragon · 9/10 · 21 December 2018]

Terry Pratchett is one of my favorite writers. I have every single book published in my country, 41 to be precise, and that's not even half of his bibliography. He is best known for his Discworld series, dozens of novels placed on a flat world, carried through space on the shoulders of four elephants, standing on the back of Atuin, gigantic turtle. Sounds familiar? In these novels, Terry parodies the whole history of humanity in all its aspects. I can not choose the favorite one, because every single one is awesome. Some of his work is adapted to movies, TV series and cartoons and I think I saw them all. On par with "The Colour of Magic", this is by far the best adaptation. I won't go into the story itself because I will assume everyone has read the book. And if you still didn't, do yourself a favor and put it on your priority list. Like Terry's books, this movie is extremely entertaining, hilarious and joyful. It may not be a masterpiece of cinematography, but it surely is the masterpiece of clever and meaningful comedy.

9/10

It made me moist!

[adamjohns-42575 · 7/10 · 10 January 2023]

Going Postal (2010) -

Moist Von Lipwig has always been one of my favourite Terry Pratchett characters and I would have loved to have seen this story continued in to a larger series that took him on the rest of his previously established journey from the books, where he later ran the bank and then the trains too (Although I haven't read that one yet). I think it was a missed opportunity that they didn't build upon this Terry Pratchett interpretation, which I would call a success. I believe they did try with the TV series 'The Watch' (2020-1), but the BBC didn't quite deliver the humour as well as Sky had and the set up was a bit political.

It was definitely the best of Sky's efforts to produce Discworld stories so far. It wasn't as daft as 'The Colour Of Magic' (2008) or as weird and creepy as 'The Hogfather' (2006) and I believe that it managed to deliver the humorous message of the original book whilst placing it in a world that I could almost recognise as current, despite its more old fashioned elements. It had great sets, costumes and of course actors too.

Richard Coyle was brilliant in the leading role. I've always had a soft spot for him, some might say that it's a weird crush, but I think he's quite sexy and funny. He had the right temperament to play Moist as I had read him.

David Suchet playing the duplicitous Reacher Gilt was absolutely fantastic, as was to be expected and Charles Dance was superb too in his role of The Patrician, Lord Vetinari, the part was almost written for him.

I could also appreciate Claire Foy. Her character Adora Belle Dearheart was well formed and she brought a feistiness to it in spades. Having only recently discovered her excellent interpretation of Queen Elizabeth II in 'The Crown' (2016-) I was impressed by the differences she brought to this character to separate it from 'Her Maj' and to make it her own.

The story was a little bit like 'A Christmas Carol' to start with, as Lipwig was shown the error of his ways and it did omit a lot of the politics of Golem rights that featured in the book, which was a part of it that I had liked, but the Golem's were great and the story overall was easy to follow at least.

Not quite as it was written, but a pleasure to watch nevertheless.

723.71/1000.

Turned out to be lots of fun...

[Franklie · 10/10 · 21 May 2015]

This show was not at all what we expected. We're not familiar with Terry Pratchett's work and had his name mixed-up in our minds with Monty Python's Terry Gilliam, so it was VERY fun to occasionally hear a line in the movie that sounded very Python-ish.

The writing was fantastically clever and witty. LOVED all the humor about the pins. We didn't realize it was a story with a message, several of them in fact, and very timely.

We also didn't realize the show would be family-friendly, which was fantastic!! They didn't even refer to "crap" or "freakin" (or their synonyms) which most writers can't seem to avoid these days. Instead, we got to hear all sorts of fun exclamations and whatnot that just made us smile.

There were some big plot holes in the type of message used in the race at the end of the show, but they're easy to overlook if you're into the spirit of the story. And we could have done w/o the sliminess of the banshee and the blind man bit.

But we really really liked it and wish more shows would have this level of writing.

I guess its ok.

[invisibleunicornninja · 7/10 · 2 March 2018]

This film, though deeply flawed was still entertaining. I had a lot of fun watching it. I haven't read the book, and as always I'd like to advise anyone planning to watch to stick around for the end credits as there are scenes in them.

Plot - The plot was decent. It was coherent and well-written. There is a love story that's kinda thrown in there that I didn't really like, but other than that its pretty good.

Villan - The villains are never that good in movies. The one in this movie isn't much of an exception. His only motivation seemed to be his hatred for the post office, which wasn't really explained. Though not all of his plans worked, and some of them were kind of dumb, he was an actual threat. There was actual tension throughout the story because this guy is actually prepared to kill people to get what he wants and doesn't waste time with pointless monologues.

The Effects - I was laughing each time this movie attempted to use any kind of practical effects or CGI. This movie's sets are also bad - not as bad as the effects, but still. This movie clearly did not have the budget it needed. If this movie had more money to work with, I'm sure that it would've looked a lot nicer.

Acting - Most of the actors were pretty good. They make their cartoonish personalities come to life. I didn't like some of the characters. but that's not at the fault of the actors. I liked that the protagonists and the villains were all relatively clever and for the most part knew what they were doing. It made the story more enjoyable. There are some bits where smart characters act infuriatingly stupid, but nowhere near as much as some others.

Speed and Sound - There are a ton of scenes that are clearly sped-up. I don't know why. Most of them aren't even scenes where anything intense is happening. Its extremely awkward to see characters move around in that jerky fashion. There are also a lot of weird shots throughout the film that are incredibly cringeworthy. There are also some problems with the sound design. The voices and mouth movements didn't always match up.

Overall this was a fun, somewhat clever movie with some cringeworthy humor and presentation. I had a bit of fun watching this movie, but I probably wouldn't watch it again.

Whimsical and Wacky

[marspeach · 8/10 · 27 April 2011]

It's not really a period drama so much as a costume drama- It's got a magical, Dickensian feel with the Victorian inspired costumes and settings. The world is located on the back of four elephants who are on a giant turtle…I haven't read any of the series but from what I've read about it and from watching this adaptation, it's a comical cross between Dickens and fantasy.

This series definitely made me interested in Terry Pratchett's works! Don't know if I'll have time to read them any time soon but one day it would be fun! I think if you like fantasy series like Harry Potter and such as well as costume dramas you should like this show.

weird visual world

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 8 October 2016]

In Ankh-Morpork, there are vampires and werewolves. More importantly, the post office is a crumbling mess. Moist Von Lipwig (Richard Coyle) is a petty con man. He gets caught and Lord Vetinari (Charles Dance) hangs him to an inch of his life. Vetinari lets him off to head the defunct post office. Mr. Pump, a golem, is used as his unceasing guardian and parole officer. Groat and Stanley are the only two junior postmen. Their opposition is the Clacks which compost of countless light towers relaying messages run by the ruthless Reacher Gilt. Lipwig tries to modify Pump and goes to the Golem Trust. He finds Adora Belle Dearheart (Claire Foy) in mourning after her brother John Dearheart was killed on top of one of the Clacks towers.

It's a wild, imaginative adaptation of this weird fantasy world. It's a wonder visually considering it's a TV show. I'm not terribly in love with these characters. Lipwig is too dumb at times, and too mean-spirited for too long. His first letter is a missed opportunity. There was no real reason for him to deliver it. There has to be a more compelling reason for a scheming, selfish conman to selflessly deliver the first letter. Inventing stamps is interesting. In addition, I'm uncertain about Adora Belle's character. She's very one dimensional and I would like her to be more. This is a nice wacky world and I would like to like the characters more.

an entertaining trip to Ankh-Morpork

[myriamlenys · 8/10 · 20 March 2021]

Made with obvious love and devotion, "Going Postal" is a fine, faithful adaptation of Terry Pratchett's novel. There's a fine cast giving good performances - Charles Dance is especially impressive as Lord Vetinari - and the costumes, sets and effects are all great.

The mini-series treats the same themes as the book, such as the problems that arise when a public service or a general utility morphs into a private firm wanting to make a profit - and preferably a great deal of profit at that. It also condemns the extraordinary lengths to which some people and firms will go in order to make money, laws and morals be damned. Here it is hard not to think of the fruity antics of some of the world's current ultra-rich, who crush unions, exploit workers, pollute the environment, subvert policy, avoid taxes, reap unearned subsidies and still have the gall to lecture the rest of us.

In a somewhat lighter vein, the mini-series also pokes fun at the world of collectors and collecting. (One of the comedic highlights involves our Postmaster-general protagonist stepping into a shop and enquiring about some hardcore pin action.)

In my humble opinion "Going Postal" might have used some additional flourishes of visual absurdity or surrealism, such as a beautifully constructed bridge going nowhere, a parade of giant Dwarves or a statue of a knight besting a two-headed hamster. Apart from that, a very satisfying romp !

Gone Postal, and not going back

[Funky_B90 · 2/10 · 1 June 2010]

First off I'd just like to say that I don't like being negative about bodies of work as a lot of people have worked tirelessly to put together a piece of art that has required dedication, hard work and many many late nights I'm sure.

This being said, I was moved to write a review on what is one of my favourite Pratchett stories due to one of the worst adaptations of a story I've watched (the worst by far being I Am Legend). This piece of work seemed extremely rushed, poorly thought out and, for me, seemed to completely miss the point of the book, and the progression of the characters.

I appreciate how hard it is to turn a large book into a 3 hour film. This being said, there were more scenes and dialogue made up than taken from the book. Entire chapters were replaced with generated scenes which didn't convey the message of the book, or develop the characters anywhere near the degree that the story did. Also, story-line's were invented and adapted to change the characters progression through story, in ways that didn't fit with the original story line. The biggest ones for me was Spike giving up smoking at the end, along with Gilt killing Horsefry and being overall far more evil than he is written as, and Moist's apparent turn from sinner into Saint. Even parts of the characters that existed were either accentuated or repressed to fit in with what seemed like Sky's target audience.

The character's were not fantastically portrayed either, although I put this down to the script rather than the actors ability. Moist had none of the flash and over the top promises that made the character who he is and was the focus for his philosophy (and gained his golden suit far too late and with no comment on it). Spike flirts constantly with Moist, and has none of the spite she begins with, and therefore came over as a wronged, fawning teen-comedy star. Vetinari was closer, but again missed the malevolent, no nonsense attitude he appears in the book with. Gilt comes across far less as a nasty business-man with a con-artist back ground, and more like a James Bond baddie determined to rule the world.

The one point of praise I do have is the fantastic casting. Purely on looks, I think it is one of the best cast choice since the LoTR trilogy. Every character, building and costume looks stunning and the extras who supplied their own costumes deserve an extra bit of praise for making the look if it so genuine.

If you haven't read the story, then go and enjoy it. If you have, then steer clear unless you want a simplified and child-like version of what is a fantastic story from one of the most prolific writers of our time.

Awesome Movie

[foreverfooled · 10/10 · 21 June 2019]

I absolutely love Going Postal. It's such a fun movie and Richard Coyle is brilliant in this role!!!

Fantastic Pratchett

[foreverfooled · 10/10 · 10 January 2019]

Going Postal is the best version of a Pratchett novel turned into a movie. The cast is perfect!!!