John Landis' retelling of the true story of the notorious bodysnatchers of the early 18th century, supplying fresh bodies for the purposes of medical research (sometimes so fresh that the hearts hadn't stopped beating until Burke and Hare made sure they did) is a curious movie.
The expression which kept going through my head while I was watching it was "knockabout comedy." Now I'm not saying that comedy and horror can't happily co-exist - Landis' own American Werewolf In London is a case in point - but there is a difference between comedy and knockabout comedy. I must say that there is a lot of quite funny stuff in this movie - the knockabout comedy, for the most part, works well in isolation. And there is also a sense of authentic 18th century grime, greyness and coldness to accompany the gruesome (but not that gruesome) activities of the individuals involved. The problem is that, while I like bacon, and I like custard, I'm not sure I want to eat them together, and the comedy and horror in Burke And Hare sits in the same area for me.
The cast all perform well, although nearly everyone - and there are a lot of well-known faces here - is required to do either a Scots or Irish accent and some of them are, let's be honest, a bit dodgy.
Jessica Hynes has a lot of fun, as does her character: the audience perhaps less so.
Isla Fisher looks as if she has been visited by the Boob Fairy post-birth. This is not a bad thing. her flair for comedy is put to good use.
Simon Pegg engages audience sympathy: Andy Serkis doesn't.
The expression which kept going through my head while I was watching it was "knockabout comedy." Now I'm not saying that comedy and horror can't happily co-exist - Landis' own American Werewolf In London is a case in point - but there is a difference between comedy and knockabout comedy. I must say that there is a lot of quite funny stuff in this movie - the knockabout comedy, for the most part, works well in isolation. And there is also a sense of authentic 18th century grime, greyness and coldness to accompany the gruesome (but not that gruesome) activities of the individuals involved. The problem is that, while I like bacon, and I like custard, I'm not sure I want to eat them together, and the comedy and horror in Burke And Hare sits in the same area for me.
The cast all perform well, although nearly everyone - and there are a lot of well-known faces here - is required to do either a Scots or Irish accent and some of them are, let's be honest, a bit dodgy.
Jessica Hynes has a lot of fun, as does her character: the audience perhaps less so.
Isla Fisher looks as if she has been visited by the Boob Fairy post-birth. This is not a bad thing. her flair for comedy is put to good use.
Simon Pegg engages audience sympathy: Andy Serkis doesn't.