THE INBETWEENERS MOVIE (2011 - Cert 15)

I must admit that when this project was first announced it didn't excite me. Don't get me wrong, I'm a massive fan of the television series (if you haven't seen it by now, you really must pull your finger out) and it's accurate observations of being a teenage boy inter-spliced with gross out humour that never fails to shock and bring laughs, but a film version? Really? We've been here before, On The Buses and Kevin and Perry Go Large are British examples, the disappointing X-Files film is another that springs to mind, where something has been lost in translation to the big screen. Sitcoms work in brilliant 25 - 30 minute bursts, they aren't baggy, the story lines have to be concise and the writers can focus on the laughs. Treble or quadruple the length and all of sudden everything becomes bogged down with plot and concept and it loses balance. I feared for The Inbetweeners.

Then I saw the trailer. Ordinarily for a comedy, they try and pack the best jokes into the preview, if that was the case with The Inbetweeners then we were in a lot of trouble. If that was the best that the four chaps could muster then a baggy plot is the least of our worries, it just wasn't going to be funny. That trailer and my reservations meant that I had firmly decided that The Inbetweeners was one where I would be waiting for DVD, I've only got so much free time to get to the flicks (jobs eh?).



Then word began to spread and money began to be spent. I didn't hear a bad word said about it, from both critics and the man and woman on the street, it was top of the UK Box Office for four consecutive weeks, raking in almost £40m in that period. That's more than The Hangover 2 and the fourth Pirates film. Third biggest film in the UK this year, behind the final Harry Potter and The King's Speech. Whether it's good or not, that is a remarkable achievement for something that started life as a little know sitcom on E4.

So I gave in and went to see whether it was worth all the fuss. And I have to say that it is.

The film sees boys finish sixth form and Simon dumped by his sweetheart Carly. Surely the only way to get over her is to go to on holiday with the boys? The almost formulaic decision to move the setting to a trip to Malia brought groans of derision and only increased my reservations, but it must be said that it was an inspired choice. It's a rite of passage for us growing up, it's part of our quest for independence. And all boys holidays bring about funny stories....

The best way to sum it up is that it really is just like the television programme. What would you expect, the writers and usual director all being retained. As a result it never really feels cinematic, apart from an opening short that goes from the sky into Simon's bedroom. That never really matters though as the sentiment behind it has not been lost, the edgy gross out humour is there, the foul mouths are there and the awkward comedy that us Brits are now famous is present and correct. Most importantly it is funny. The jokes in the trailer that I didn't think worked, were now funny, put them in a context and you have laughs. The big set piece scenes fit nicely, although never really living up to those key moments from the TV series. The characters are as we remember them, Neil dim-witted and enthusiastic, Simon is the usual wet lettuce and overly eager to please, Jay continues to talk the finest vintage BS that you could imagine and our narrator Will still exasperates as to how he ended up in all of this, despite the fact that he secretly loves it. Many people have commented on just how perfectly The Inbetweeners encapsulates what it's like to be a teenage boy, but as a bloke who has done these holidays, it's incredible just how authentic some of it feels. The roles of PR's getting us into clubs, the matching t-shirts, the transfer from the airport, the hotel lottery, being stuck at a family pool, it's all perfectly observed and much of my enjoyment of the film must be put down to how it all reminded me of a time long gone by.

As the outpouring of word of mouth and positive reviews have turned into a tidal wave, people have started to claim that the film is our answer to American Pie, and I've got to say that I think just doesn't really give it the compliment it deserves. The Inbetweeners has a but more of a soft side than it's American comparison and the numerous sequels and imitators. There are some really nice moments in it, as the boys go from arguing and making up, that really are quite sweet. I particularly liked an exchange between Neil and Will, the posh one asking rhetorically what the point of it all is, only to receive an unexpected answer that was just what the doctor ordered. There is nothing like teenage boys making up, all grunts and limp handshakes.

It's not just about the four chaps though is it? It's about their hormonal hunt for women. And it's the women, the group of four girls that are the object of the boys' affections, that did irritate me a little. Not that there is anything wrong with their performances, Laura Haddock, Tamla Kari, Jessica Knappet and  Lydia Rose Bewley all doing a decent job, but what doesn't work is that they are all clearly out of the chaps' league. There is just no reason why the girls would be susceptible to the advances, particularly when all the boys do is offend or act like the chocolate teapots that they are. I know that The Inbetweeners isn't completely grounded in reality, but the girls are completely out of sync with the caricatures that the majority of the characters are.

Despite all of that, come the end of the film when everyone lives happily ever after, that is all forgotten and I was completely sold on the lessons that the boys had learnt, which I think is down to the brilliance of the creations of Will, Simon, Jay and Neil. There is a history there, 3 series before the film, we know those characters and we've been through a lot with them, it's that affection that carries the film through the occasional stretches without any chuckles and had me forgiving any misjudgments.

It's not perfect, but it's yet another great look into the trials and tribulations of being a teenage boy in the world of fishbowls, boat parties and sex on the beach. It's nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be, in fact it was far better than I feared, with a very unexpected sensitiveness to it. Traces of a couple of very tiny, barely noticeable, tears were not what I was anticipating.