The first movie of Irish mother Agnes Brown
portrays her working on her Moore Street stall, which is in jeopardy from
demolition, in a fiasco, which is aided by a corrupt politician and the Russian
Mafia. However this is the movies and
it’s a Mrs. Brown story, so the odds are bound to move in the direction of
Ireland’s favourite Mammy.
For
three years now, the tv series, ‘Mrs. Brown’s Boys’ has topped the Irish and
British tv ratings, and as was the course with tv comedies in the 70s, the hit
series has now become a movie. Seemingly
the fourth season will run next year on television.
Dublin
born stand-up comedian, Brendan O’Carroll has played Agnes Brown on stage and
screen over the years, and he’s helped out by his wife, Jennifer Gibney, who
plays his daughter, Cathy. The scenario is similar to an act in Britain
from sixty or seventy years ago, when there was a real life married couple,
Arthur Shields and Kitty McShane who played the comic duo, Old Mother Reilly
and daughter, Kitty. However the
O’Carroll and Gibney act is much more successful and they have a troupe of a
dozen or so actors who are friends or relations and who appear in each of the
Mrs. Brown incarnations on stage, television and now in a movie.
The
storyline is similar enough to the plots of the tv series, ie about Mrs. Brown
facing obstacles, and resulting in her attempting to triumph over adversity.
The
day is saved, and the adventures along the way, are edge of the seat
stuff. The lead character is compelling
to watch, as are the troupe of actors.
The
cinematography of Dublin city is shown in all its positive glory, and the
tourist board will probably gain dividends when the movie is shown out of
Ireland.
David Flynn
