I first remember when this film came out on BBC1 when I was but a child. I remember lying in my room when my parents watched it, listening to my dad laughing all the way through. It was on too late for me to stay up and so it was recorded onto VHS and my parents allowed me and my brother to watch it the next day.
Ever since then, it has become tradition in our household to watch this film at Christmas, just as it has always been tradition to eat roast turkey or to decorate the Christmas tree. I have seen it so many times that I know every single word to every single scene and can even mimic the hilarious sequence of movements Alan Cumming does during the 'It'll Be Lonely This Christmas' song.
Despite all this, it is still one of the best Christmas films - let alone comedies - to come out of Britain. Lenny Henry's Genie is stupidly naive and every single line makes me laugh out loud. Even the silly humour (like when he uses the toothbrush to clean his ears!) makes me chortle, even now! Alan Cumming is great as the drown-trodden do-gooder Bernard who is done over by his nasty boss, Rowan Atkinson - who, is (as always!) absolutely fantastic in his role... especially during the scene when he fires Bernard: 'bugger-ye off!' Another one of my favourite characters is Kibble, Bernard's lift-man.. look out for him.. another great and properly British character!! The entire film is a non-stop riot of comedy and humour, puns and digs at religion in a light-hearted way, even with a Trevor MacDonald look-alike reading the news. But still, it remains heartfelt and emotional, a journey not only to find love and re-build your life, but also it boils down to the simple message that you cannot simply fix your life with a single wish; it takes hard work and good friends.
A fantastic film.. definitely worth seeing!
Ever since then, it has become tradition in our household to watch this film at Christmas, just as it has always been tradition to eat roast turkey or to decorate the Christmas tree. I have seen it so many times that I know every single word to every single scene and can even mimic the hilarious sequence of movements Alan Cumming does during the 'It'll Be Lonely This Christmas' song.
Despite all this, it is still one of the best Christmas films - let alone comedies - to come out of Britain. Lenny Henry's Genie is stupidly naive and every single line makes me laugh out loud. Even the silly humour (like when he uses the toothbrush to clean his ears!) makes me chortle, even now! Alan Cumming is great as the drown-trodden do-gooder Bernard who is done over by his nasty boss, Rowan Atkinson - who, is (as always!) absolutely fantastic in his role... especially during the scene when he fires Bernard: 'bugger-ye off!' Another one of my favourite characters is Kibble, Bernard's lift-man.. look out for him.. another great and properly British character!! The entire film is a non-stop riot of comedy and humour, puns and digs at religion in a light-hearted way, even with a Trevor MacDonald look-alike reading the news. But still, it remains heartfelt and emotional, a journey not only to find love and re-build your life, but also it boils down to the simple message that you cannot simply fix your life with a single wish; it takes hard work and good friends.
A fantastic film.. definitely worth seeing!