5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
First rate entertainment - British comedy at its very best, May 6, 2001
This review is from: Steptoe & Son Ride Again [VHS] (VHS Tape)
The British spin-off movies in the early 1970s were groundbreaking for two reasons:
1 As TV shows were often recorded live in the studio it presented an opportunity for characters to leave the confinements of those settings.
2 The censorship associated with TV programming could be relaxed
"Steptoe and Son Ride Again" is a prime illustration of both of these factors. It is the second feature film taken from the hugely popular BBC television series by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson. It benefits from a tighter script and sharper direction than the earlier film.
The narrative centres around rag-and-bone men Albert Steptoe (Wilfred Brambell) and his son Harold (Harry H Corbett). When Harold and his horse Napoleon become locked in a Pickfords removal van by mistake which takes them to York, Napoleon has to be retired following a four-day long trek back home. Harold and Albert have to go to Southall horse market in order to buy a replacement for Napoleon out of Albert's £80 life savings. Harold gets irritated by Albert's constant criticism and interference and sends him home. Harold returns much later that night drunk, having spent his father's life savings on a greyhound from a local gangster Frankie Varrow (Henry Woolf) to whom he now owns a further £120. Albert is horrified at this but is eventually persuaded by Harold that Hercules the greyhound can be a good investment. Following trials at White City stadium it appears that hack Hercules is beyond any hope. After many hours of frustration they realise that Hercules is in fact partially-sighted and fit him successfully was some contact lenses. Although he now outruns all of the other dogs at White City, to Harold's dismay, Hercules leaps across the barrier and into his arms, thus being disqualified from the race. Frankie Varrow is becoming impatient for the remaining payment and threatens Harold and Albert with violence if they do not pay up. Harold and Albert think that they're finished and then Albert remembers he has a life insurance policy which he could cash in, but only if they can fake his death, which they do it with the aid of a drunken physician. Albert's old pals are saddened to hear of his death and they all come to his wake. Meanwhile Albert hides upstairs, gloating at the tributes being paid to him. Albert then has to hide in the coffin but falls asleep, and Harold is unable to wake him. Meanwhile the insurance agent (Frank Thornton) brings the bad news that the policy had been signed over to an old flame of Albert's many years before. The horse-drawn funeral procession travels through the streets of West London, but Harold's friends think that his behaviour as he bashes the coffin chanting `wake up Dad!' is due to his grief. As the cortege progresses Harold is concussed by the door of a Pickfords removal van and rushed off to hospital. Meanwhile the funeral procession reaches the cemetery without him. Harold realising he is going to miss the funeral runs out of the hospital covered in bandages and takes a taxi to the cemetery. He disturbs the wrong funeral and s mistaken for a mummy having risen from the dead. Meanwhile, Albert finally wakes up and rises from his tomb just in time to the horror of the funeral party. Later it transpires that the old flame of Albert has remarried and he's able to cash the policy in after all but not for its full value. However this is enough to pay off the debt to Frankie Varrow and buy a new horse. But Harold is unable to resist buying a half-share in a racehorse with the remainder.
"Steptoe and Son Ride Again" is British comedy at its very best. It is rare that such a case spin-off from the successful TV series can be expanded so well in terms of its characterisation and plot. The story is no less than completely absorbing, the one-liners hilarious and the performances solid. Corbett and Brambell have a terrific rapport with eachother throughout. Henry Woolf is appropriately menacing as Frankie Varrow. There are also some excellent supporting roles from Sam Kidd, Milo O'Shea, Yootha Joyce and Bill Maynard. Hugely entertaining set pieces include the scene in the butcher's shop where Albert gets a cheap steak for the greyhound and the memorable climax at the cemetery. The realistic language and setting give the film a deep sense of authenticity of what was a rapidly disappearing age. It is equally appealing for those who remember the series and those who do not. As with most TV spin-off films, once again the critics were condescending, grossly unfair and inaccurate in their appraisals.
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1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This film is hilarious, December 7, 2002
By A Customer
This review is from: Steptoe & Son Ride Again [VHS] (VHS Tape)
They show this film every year at christmas in the U.K. You can get this for less ...there!
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