A Look at Fackham Hall – A Brisk, Funny Parody of Downton Abbey Which Is Pleasantly Ephemeral.
Maybe the notion of an ending era in the air: subsequent to a lengthy span of dormancy, the spoof is staging a comeback. The recent season observed the revival of this lighthearted genre, which, in its finest form, lampoons the grandiosity of overly serious genres with a barrage of pitched clichés, visual jokes, and dumb-brilliant double entendres.
Unserious eras, so it goes, give rise to self-awarely frivolous, laugh-filled, welcome light entertainment.
The Latest Entry in This Absurd Resurgence
The newest of these silly send-ups arrives as Fackham Hall, a Downton Abbey spoof that needles the easily mockable pretensions of gilded UK historical series. Co-written by UK-Irish comic Jimmy Carr and helmed by Jim O'Hanlon, the film finds ample of source material to work with and wastes none of it.
From a absurd opening and culminating in a outrageous finale, this amusing aristocratic caper packs every one of its runtime with puns and routines running the gamut from the childish to the genuinely funny.
A Send-Up of Upstairs, Downstairs
In the vein of Downton, Fackham Hall offers a caricature of very self-important aristocrats and very obsequious staff. The plot centers on the feckless Lord Davenport (played by an enjoyably affected Damian Lewis) and his literature-hating wife, Lady Davenport (Katherine Waterston). Following the loss of their four sons in separate unfortunate mishaps, their hopes now rest on securing unions for their two girls.
The younger daughter, Poppy (Emma Laird), has achieved the dynastic aim of an engagement to the appropriate close relative, Archibald (a wonderfully unctuous Tom Felton). But after she withdraws, the onus falls upon the unattached elder sister, Rose (Thomasin McKenzie), who is a "dried-up husk already and and holds unladylike ideas concerning female autonomy.
Its Laughs Works Best
The parody is significantly more successful when satirizing the suffocating norms placed on early 20th-century females – a subject frequently explored for earnest storytelling. The archetype of idealized womanhood offers the most fertile material for mockery.
The plot, as is fitting for a purposefully absurd spoof, is secondary to the jokes. The co-writer delivers them arriving at a consistently comedic rate. Included is a homicide, an incompetent investigation, and an illicit love affair featuring the charming pickpocket Eric Noone (Ben Radcliffe) and Rose.
A Note on Lighthearted Fun
The entire affair is in the spirit of playful comedy, but that very quality imposes restrictions. The amplified silliness characteristic of the genre may tire over time, and the entertainment value in this instance runs out at the intersection of a skit and feature.
Eventually, you might wish to return to stories with (at least a modicum of) logic. Nevertheless, one must admire a wholehearted devotion to the craft. If we're going to amuse ourselves to death, we might as well see the funny side.
