Quote: Tim Walker @ August 3 2009, 1:39 PM BSTWhat it did was alter the persepective for the viewer. It showed to an extent that Brent was right about what he complained about, that TV documentaries are "crafty. They edit things to make you look bad". (Which is true.)
I'm not sure that The Office was ever really about a documentary that stitched up David Brent. Or indeed even much of an attack on the documentary genre. To me it was more a hook to hang naturalistic comedy on.
I don't think it was an attack on documentaries at all. What I was saying is that the point that Brent makes about the skewed editing of them does hold water. It also lends credibility to the character, as no-one in real life could be that much of an arse all the time. People rarely are. Those we dislike we tend to form opinion on only from our selective memory. Not saying that Gervais & Merchant deliberately had this point to make (though I suspect to some extent they did), but it certainly can be read that way.
Quote: Rob M @ March 26 2009, 11:09 PM BSTI recently enjoyed the last episode of series 10 of Are You Being Served? (just released in Australia). It featured Mike Berry performing a great song by Manhattan Transfer.
That was probably the only good thing Mike Berry did in AYBS. Otherwise his Mr Spooner was just a very lame imitation of Mr Lucas. He was great in Worzel Gummidge though.
Quote: Tim Walker @ August 3 2009, 2:11 PM BSTI don't think it was an attack on documentaries at all. What I was saying is that the point that Brent makes about the skewed editing of them does hold water. It also lends credibility to the character, as no-one in real life could be that much of an arse all the time.
He was an arse, but the genius of the show - and especially Gervais's performance - is that I kind of liked him. His biggest crime was that he wanted to be liked. We're all guilty of that.
Quote: chipolata @ August 3 2009, 2:35 PM BSTHe was an arse, but the genius of the show - and especially Gervais's performance - is that I kind of liked him. His biggest crime was that he wanted to be liked. We're all guilty of that.
What they did very nicely in the specials was to make the office seem genuinely a less enjoyable place to work without him as boss (and to some extent, without Dawn). The introduction of Elizabeth Berrington's character was key to this.
Quote: Tim Walker @ August 3 2009, 3:02 PM BSTWhat they did very nicely in the specials was to make the office seem genuinely a less enjoyable place to work without him as boss (and to some extent, without Dawn). The introduction of Elizabeth Berrington's character was key to this.
She was great. Although she got her just deserts in the end.
When she called Big Keith "grotesque" she emphasised the change in the air since Brent left - a nastiness rather than mere stupidity - and also made her humiliating come-uppance completely justified.
My fave final sitcom episode is definitely Basil the Rat in FT. What a fun way to end a classic, classic show.
Goodnight Sweetheart had a touching and a great ending.