Keeping Up Appearances: The Full Bouquet
by Harold Snoad
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DVD details
Actor: Clive Swift, Geoffrey Hughes, Patricia RoutledgeDirector: Harold Snoad
Brand: Warner Brothers
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Full Screen, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 1400 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2004-09-07
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Model: E2025
Studio: BBC Warner
DVD Reviews of Keeping Up Appearances: The Full Bouquet
DVD Review: Mostly wonderful....except
Summary: 4 Stars
Ok fanbois, get your "not helpfuls" ready because I'm going to dare to criticise your favorite show a little. After all, the ostensible purpose of these reviews is to help fellow customers know what they are getting for their money before they buy right? Writing "This show is totally awsome and perfect!!" might get me more votes, but would hardly be "helpful".
For those not familiar with the program, Keeping Up Appearances is a British Sitcom that ran from the early-to-mid 90's, and follows the daily escapades of one Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced Bouquet of course), and her extended family and neighbors.
The main character, Hyacinth is played by the legendary English stage actress Patricia Routledge, and what a marvelous performance it is. With Hyacinth, Mrs Routledge has given us one of the funniest and most memorable ladies in television history. The bulk of the shows are centered around her (rightfully so), and her escapades as the world's most annoying neighbor. Hyacinth, you see, is an upper middle-class housewife whose primary goal in life is to join the ranks of the upper-crust society matrons and aristocracy, and virtually all of the episodes revolve around her dogged pursuit of impressing those around her with her taste and upper-class elegance.
Her pursuits are usually frustrated by her long-suffering husband's middle-class income, and by the intrusion of her lower-working class relatives (picture a U.K. version of the Rosanne bunch). Several of the episodes center on her lovable but slovenly sisters repeatedly foiling her attempts to ingratiate herself into high-society by...well..showing-up at inopportune moments and embarrassing her.
The supporting cast is absolutely wonderful. Clive Swift, as the poor, henpecked husband Richard is a delight as a man who long-ago decided that a nod and a weary aquiescence was better than a heart attack at 40. His quiet and mannered Richard is an ideal comedic foil for the bombastic Hyacinth. Her boisterous and self-absorbed character might get to be a bit much without his dry and charming demeanor for balance.
The world of KUA is populated with a wealth of funny and memorable characters, my favorite, of whom is Elizabeth, the long-suffering, timid neighbor who is constantly terrorized by the overbearing Hyacinth. With her trembling nerves and ernormous "bug-eyes", she reminds me of a human version of Beaker from the Muppet Show. Yes, that was actually a complement.
No doubt you've heard many times, of the debate on whether U.S. audiences will "get" British humor. The majority of times the debate is silly. With the enormous popularity of Monty Python, Mr. Bean and many others in the states, it shows that mostly, humor is indeed universal. However, if there ever was British humor some Americans might not "get", it would be Keeping Up Appearances. The reason being that much of the comedy of the series is based on the idea that the entire neighborhood lives in abject fear of having to talk to Hyacinth and listen to her boring and vacuous prattle. They will dive behind bushes and vault over hedges in order to avoid being seen by her and thereby risk having to be invited to one of her infamous candlelight suppers.
The British, of course, are famously honest about their dread of embarrassment or discomfort in social situations. Monty Python has done numerous sketches on the subject. Americans, on the other hand, generally don't suffer from this cultural malady, and may find themselves wondering why people just don't tell her to shut up. Some U.S. viewers unaware of this uniquely English quirk may not understand why everyone is in fear of Hyacinth, but we anglophiles certainly do.
The makers of the DVD set have also provided far more in the way of extras than is normally the case with TV season sets. Each and every disc contains a blooper reel as well as a neat set of interviews with the cast, or a tv special on Patricia Routledge's career, etc.
So what's the downside? Well, it's simply repetition. A LOT of it.
The producers and/or writers of the show, whether out of expedience, laziness, or some misguided idea, have decided to take the idea of the "running gag" to often exasperating lengths. Over the course of the 8-disc set of episodes you will see the gag with Hyacinth being barked-at by her brother-in-law's dog and falling into the hedge from suprise, repeated at least 10 times. You will see the plot of at least 5 episodes based around her senile father running away from home. You will see Elizabeth spill her coffee from nervousness at least 20 times. You will hear Elizabeth's brother Emmett say the line "I hope she doesn't sing at me. I hate it when she sings at me" repeated in virtually every episode. You will see virtually the identical scene of Hyacinth telling poor Richard how to drive at least 13 times. You will hear Hyacinth loudly proclaim when the phone rings.."It's my sister Violet. The one with the Mercedes and a sauna and room for a pony!" at least 25 times.
Now, there's nothing inherently wrong with the old running gag, but this series has taken the tradition to often absurd lengths. Am I really supposed to laugh the 10th time Hyacinth is startled by the barking dog? Apparently.
These shows, of course were originally broadcast weekly, over 6 years, with months between seasons, and meant to be seen that way. When you watch several back-to-back courtesy of home video, these flaws become much more apparent.
My advice is to buy this set, as the show overall is very charming and can be very, very funny. So funny, in fact, that I still give it 4 stars even with all the repetition I complained-of, and I still enjoyed it far more than the adolescent, low-brow schlock passing for comedy in the U.S.
After all, I would still rather see something funny repeated than something unfunny once. But you may want to limit yourself to one or two episodes per week, otherwise your eyes may start rolling like mine did at the 57th straight "Onslow won't get busy with his wife" joke.
Description of Keeping Up Appearances: The Full Bouquet
This gift set encompasses series one through five as well as all the specials and EC in one complete set. Tireless social climber Hyacinth Bucket (pronounced 'Bouquet' of course) puts her best foot forward and takes her bow in this wildly popular high-class comedy.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS UPC: 794051202529Bestsellers in DVD
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