Fackham Hall – A Brisk, Funny Downton Abbey Spoof Which Is Pleasantly Throwaway.
Maybe the sense of uncertain days around us: subsequent to a lengthy span of dormancy, the spoof is making a return. The recent season observed the revival of this unserious film style, which, when done well, mocks the grandiosity of excessively solemn genre with a torrent of pitched clichés, visual jokes, and stupid-clever puns.
Frivolous times, so it goes, create an appetite for self-awarely frivolous, joke-dense, refreshingly shallow amusement.
The Newest Addition in This Silly Resurgence
The newest of these silly send-ups arrives as Fackham Hall, a takeoff on the British period drama that needles the easily mockable pretensions of wealthy UK historical series. The screenplay comes from British-Irish comedian Jimmy Carr and overseen by Jim O'Hanlon, the movie finds ample of inspiration to mine and exploits every bit of it.
From a ludicrous start and culminating in a preposterous conclusion, this enjoyable silver-spoon romp fills each of its 97 minutes with jokes and bits running the gamut from the childish all the way to the truly humorous.
A Pastiche of Upstairs, Downstairs
Similar to Downton, Fackham Hall delivers a spoof of extremely pompous the nobility and excessively servile staff. The narrative centers on the hapless Lord Davenport (brought to life by an enjoyably affected Damian Lewis) and his book-averse wife, Lady Davenport (Katherine Waterston). Having lost their four sons in separate calamitous events, their plans fall upon finding matches for their two girls.
The younger daughter, Poppy (Emma Laird), has achieved the aristocratic objective of betrothal to the appropriate close relative, Archibald (a wonderfully unctuous Tom Felton). Yet when she withdraws, the onus shifts to the single elder sister, Rose (Thomasin McKenzie), described as an old maid already and who harbors radically progressive notions concerning women's independence.
The Film's Comedy Lands Most Effectively
The film is significantly more successful when joking about the stifling expectations placed on Edwardian-era ladies – an area typically treated for po-faced melodrama. The archetype of respectable, enviable femininity provides the richest comic targets.
The narrative thread, as befitting a purposefully absurd send-up, takes a back seat to the bits. Carr keeps them maintaining a pleasantly funny clip. There is a homicide, a farcical probe, and a star-crossed attraction involving the roguish thief Eric Noone (Ben Radcliffe) and Rose.
A Note on Frivolous Amusement
It's all for harmless amusement, though that itself imposes restrictions. The heightened silliness characteristic of the genre can wear after a while, and the comic fuel in this instance runs out somewhere between sketch and feature.
At a certain point, you might wish to go back to the world of (at least a modicum of) logic. Yet, one must applaud a genuine dedication to this type of comedy. In an age where we might to distract ourselves relentlessly, we might as well find the humor in it.
