The British Film Industry has historically had a strong reputation when it comes to comedy. From the Ealing Comedies to Monty Python, Richard Curtis and Edgar Wright, we’re internationally renowned for making people laugh. This is bolstered by the TV work of Chris Morris, Armando Iannucci, Steve Coogan and Stephen Fry. Unfortunately, this country also makes some dreadful low budget comedy (Sex Lives of the Potato Men anyone?). Thankfully, whilst Convenience was made on a shoestring it’s a rather impressive and well judged comedy.
Ajay (Ray Panthaki) and Shaan (Adeel Akhtar) have a huge problem. When Russian gangsters arrive on their doorstep to collect the £8000 bill Shaan has run up in a strip club, they need to take decisive action. Levi (Vicky McClure) is expecting a quiet and boring night working in an all-night garage, but that all changes when the pair show up. When they realise that the safe is on a time lock, the bungling duo are in for a long night of it.
Keri Collins won a Welsh BAFTA for Convenience and you can see why. Whilst it’s limited in the sense it’s set in one location and some of the dialogue could have used some work, it’s cleverly written and handled. Vicky McClure does a great job of steadying the ship when her co-stars threaten to go off the rails, but the film, which on the face of it seems just daft, turns out to have surprising layers of depth. Convenience is not a classic by any means but it’s more than just a pleasant diversion, and bodes well for the future of both Collins and McClure.
Convenience is out in cinemas on Friday.
