TotalTelly.co.uk
Devoted to Popular, Cult and Retro TV
Rita, Sue And Bob Too [1986]
![Rita, Sue And Bob Too [1986]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/513E896L28L._SL160_.jpg)
RRP: £19.99
Our Price: £5.12 (subject to change)
Jumps!
Review date: 2008-11-19 Rating: 10 out of 10
This is an excellent comedy by the British director Alan Clarke (who also directed films like "Scum" and "Made In Britain"). If you have seen those films or know of Clarke, this will give a clue about the setting - it's typically working-class with no sentimentality or condescension. The film itself is essentially a sex comedy, with a man (Bob, surprisingly enough) in a stale marraige conducting an affair with their teenaged babysitters, and the (mis)adventures resulting.
But the film is also an extremely sharp analysis of class and social mores in the mid-1980s, with Bob an example of the successful working-class man in a middle-class environment, Rita and Sue in a school straight out of "Kes", and Sue's shoddy homelife is shown precisely, yet humourously and empathetically. Similarly, the interlude where Sue dates an Asian boy is deft and precise, but still funny (the scene where he invites her to "lie down" is classic, and a lesson for al shy boys out there...).
Although the precision of the setting does date the film, the warmth, satire and social commentary remain, making this a little gem of a film. It's also unusually humourous for an Alan Clarke film or play, which are usually searingly intense, but a little light relief is a good thing, as I'm sure Bob would agree!
Similar Products
- Wish You Were Here [1987]
- East Is East [1999]
- Quadrophenia (2 Disc Special Edition) [1979]
- Withnail And I [1986]
- Brassed Off [1996]
Product Details/Specifications
Actor(s):
Michelle Holmes
Siobhan Finneran
George Costigan
Lesley Sharp
Creators:
George Costigan (Primary Contributor)
Siobhan Finneran (Primary Contributor)
Director(s):
Recording label: 4dvd
Manufacturer: 4dvd
EAN: 6867449008790
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: PAL,
Release date: 2007-09-17
Audience rating: Suitable for 18 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 89 minutes
Language: English (Original Language)