St Trinian's [2007] - DVD (Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Jodie Whittaker, Russell Brand, Tallulah Riley - Dir: Oliver Parker)

To some extent, the team behind the revival of St. Trinian's were on a bit of a hiding to nothing. The old films, contextualised by a far different age, were knockabout, energetic, yet innocent comedies about the antics of a boisterous girls' school and its inhabitants. Surprisingly though, the remake--again inspired by the Ronald Searle cartoons--manages to sidestep the bulk of the obstacles in its path, and proves itself as a likeable, entertaining comedy.

The plot of St. Trinian's is as paper-thin as you'd expect, and serves merely as a platform for the anarchic actions of the cast of characters (some hokum about stealing a picture and saving the school). And a mischievous lot they prove to be: while they don't quite live up to the memories of the generation of St. Trinian's students before them, the primarily young cast still attack their roles with tremendous, and infectious, gusto.

And leading the cast is Rupert Everett, in an entertaining duel role at St. Trinian's headmistress Miss Frinton and her brother, Carnaby. Joined by Colin Firth, he's clearly having a whale of a time, and his casting process a wise decision. It's great to see the always-wonderful Celia Imrie in there, too.

St Trinian's, as you'd expect, has plenty of problems, notably a script that relies too much on the charm of its cast to pull it through. But heck, it's still fun, and a hard film not to enjoy. It won't win Oscars, but it will put a grin on your face. --Jon Foster

Customer Reviews of St Trinian's [2007]

R. Griffiths
UK
26th September 2008

Jolly hockey sticks
What a riot this is! I was hesitant at first, largely because I tend to get my knickers in a knot over modern teenagers (chavs? emos? huh?) but I want to be one NOW! I always wanted to go to boarding school (too much Enid Blyton as a child) but who needs Malory Towers? It's got a great soundtrack, the girls look fantastic, there's a strong message of solidarity and Rupert Everett always makes me laugh. This will become one of my must-sees on horrid winter evenings or when I'm in need of a boost. If only we'd sung a school song along those lines - we'd certainly have sung a lot louder! Watch this. It's great.

Jenny Wren
England
13th September 2008

Good film, wrong time
This film is fun and well-made, with some excellent performances, notably from Rupert Everett and Colin Firth, but its ultimate failure is down more to the times in which we live than the film itself. The original St Trinians celebrated anarchy in a repressed world, but these days it is hard to find anything funny in the idea of schoolgirl violence, because it is a commonplace reality. Ronald Searle's cartoons of children distilling gin were hilarious - but who finds it funny now that children sell drugs, or 'moonshine' so strong it kills people? The producers have done their best to tackle this problem, and tried to keep their violent stars the 'underdogs' by depicting the 'rich girls' school' as even more violent and prone to bullying, but it doesn't quite come off. In fairness, I am middle -aged, and younger people might enjoy this a lot more than I did. There is a genuine attempt to create a moral 'core', in that the suggestions of one schoolgirl to raise money by kidnapping and mutilating a rich person are dismissed as 'sick', and also one slightly unconvincing effort to be uplifting, by having a message that the pursuit of celebrity is less important than fulfilling one's own potential.
Otherwise, it's colourful, tense in the right places, funny in others, and IF YOU CAN FORGET THE REAL WORLD AROUND YOU it's an enjoyable night in.

Terry
UK
30th August 2008

Disappointed
Having seen and enjoyed the old series of films I suppose I was spoil with great actors and actresses and expected to be entertained by the new film the same. I was really disappointed with it, i found the acting less than satisfactory and also wooden in places. I tried to stick with it and give it a chance but got so bored after 30 minuets of it I turned it off and gave the DVD away. I am sure some will like it though who have not seen and enjoyed the originals.

Stampy
England
20th August 2008

The worst British film i have ever seen
Annabelle Fritton (Riley) is sent to one of the worst all girl schools in the country, which is on the verge of being shutdown.

Having a lot of respect for British cinema, and being very patriotic, I am almost disgusted by how this film appears.

Gone is the genius and controversy of Trainspotting. The political correctness of Brassed off has disappeared, and we are left with a predictable, unrealistic and a sad excuse for a British film in a dreadful unfunny story about an all girl's school.

Though I'm not a massive fan, Colin Firth (Pride and Prejudice) and Rupert Everett (A Midsummer Night's dream) should have carried this film, but gave poor performances in what are two very confusing characters with a bizarre history that is never properly explained. And the supporting cast are all just boring, with no humour and predictability written over their faces. I'm not a fan, but Russell Brand was the best thing about this film, which says a lot when sophisticated actors like Firth can't even match Brand.

The plot is boring and all over the place with bizarre visuals and pauses. One of the least funny "comedies" I have seen, with perhaps only 3 or 4 laugh out loud moments during the whole 97 minutes. Predictable and way too modern, with jokes about current celebrities and TV shows, I mean how will this appeal to people in 20 years? They won't know what is going on. It is a film that has been made for the current media.

The acting is poor, and the plot is always predictable. However there were a few surprises in store and is sometimes interesting.

The plot could was all over the place. Started off focusing on the girl who was arriving, then she was lost half way through as it went all political. Then there was a brief introduction of modern day stereotypes, and why that wasn't further developed I will never know. Audiences need a true gritty story about a stereotype. And then this awkward last ditch unrealistic chance to save the school, and was just not what I expected at all and if you're looking for a good teenage comedy, try Ferris Bueller's Day Off or Euro Trip, as St Trinian's is poor, predictable and quite frankly, the worst British film I have ever seen.

3/10

vidsim
BC, Canada
15th August 2008

Maniac rules
Wasn't quite sure what to expect from the remake. Some of the casting is a bit off. Some of the actresses are obviously too old to play schoolgirls like Taylor is better known for playing a 20-something in "2 pints of lager" and Russell Brand is not good enough to play Flash Harry. The plot itself is a bit predictable and silly, but then again so were the original films. Not sure how well the film will translate to an oversea market as there a lot of "British" jokes reference, eg Colin Firth/Mr Darcy. On the plus side, the sound track is used well and in the end it's a good laugh.