Starter For Ten DVD > Reviews > A starter for ten? Or a non starter?

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Indifferent to it
Story	Very ordinary
Characters / Performances	Satisfactory
Special Effects	Standard
How does it compare to similar films?	Unmemorable

Advantages:	easy viewing
Disadvantages:	doesn't go anywhere

Recommend to potential buyers:

no

Full review

I was really looking forward to watching Starter for 10 after having read some positive reviews about in on both Dooyoo and Ciao! and also because it's British. I sat down to watch it last night with my husband, and although it was a reasonably enjoyable film, it sort of left me feeling well 'what was the point of that?'

At the centre of the film is Brian Jackson (played by James McAvoy). He's an ordinary sort of lad from an ordinary seaside town in Essex who makes it good and gains a place at Bristol University. At the beginning of the film we learn that he has a huge fascination with general knowledge and loves the programme University Challenge with a passion. When he gets to Bristol he mnages to get on the team to take part in the quiz. He also falls for one of his extremely attractive team mates, whilst befriending a few other colourful characters along the way.

It's hard to say what the film is about really. I sort of expected it to be about university life and was wistfully looking forward to being transported back to my own college days. It really only touched on that aspect though. I also thought it might be more about the process of getting on University Challenge but this was only treated very lightly as well. It was a bit about Brian falling for Alice, a young lady quite obviously from a different class to Brian, but anything to do with the class division, which could have been either thoughtful or very funny, was also passed over in a quite superficial way. There was also the fact that Brian's father had died when he was quite young. Apparently, it was his dad who had inspired his love of general knowledge, but apart from the odd comment from his mum that his dad would have been proud of him, that storyline did not seem to go anywhere either!

So at the end of the film, I couldn't be helped but left wondering what the point of it all had been. Now I have to admit that I was watching it quite late on Friday evening and I was quite tired, so it's quite possible that something really magical or clever about the film simply passed right over my head (which hs been known in the past) but my husband also had the same reaction so maybe not.

Having said that though I wouldn't say tht I didn't enjoy the film. It was very light and easy viewing and there were some quite funny moments in it. Alice's parents, played by Charles Dance and Lindsay Duncan, were quite funny but we didn't see enough of them. There was one moment, when Brian is stying at their house, that he becomes a bit stoned due to Alice's influence, comes down to the kitchen to eat something and meets Alice's mother whi is totally starkers. There then followed a very surreal conversation until they are joined by the father who is also completely naked. I do have to say that there was some very clever camera work at this time which managed to conceal all the naughty bits!

I also have to mention Brian's mum who is played by Catherine Tate. Although she played the part well, it was disappointing that she wasn't a bit more comical as that is obviously what she does so well. She did have a couple of very funny moments but not nearly enough.

One of the best thing bout this film is that it was set in 1985 and all through the film you heard different tracks from that time which definitely took me back a bit. I really enjoyed hearing songs such as 'It's a Wonderful Life' and 'The Man with the Child in his Eyes'.

Overall though I have to admit that I was slightly disappointed with the film. The fact that it is British, and directed by Tom Hanks, and has Catherine Tate in it all led me to high expectations which just didn't deliver. Having said that, it is easy viewing though and a bit of harmless fun. It's only about an hour and a half in length so it's not the worst way to while away a Friday night. It's also available on Amazon for only £4.98 so that's really not too bad. It does have a certificate of 15 - I'm not really sure why although there was some swearing and mild sex scenes.

As it's a DVD there are a couple of extras. These include cast and crew interviews which I think I would have been more inclined to watch had I enjoyed the film more. The best bit though is an interactive 80's quiz which is quite a fun challenge for those of us who were around at the time.