Protraph Lack of good storyline.

filippaberry84 I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Logan By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

Billy Ollie Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Zeech I watched this again over 3 decades after it was made with younger folks. How to make it relevant to them? The jokes fall flat in our new millennium — like the 'oh he's gay, so it's funny'. This in a sense made it relevant because it shows what was seen as funny back then.What hadn't changed is the Class War aspect which is clear and present as the backdrop, starting with the accents. Quentin Crisp joke that 'In the US your accents shows where you're from. In contrast to the UK where your accent shows where you're from'. The middle accents come from the 2 governors of the prison. The official governor, from privilege and boarding schools and the shadow governor, the prisoner who runs things from the inside with aspirations of class, displayed by his brilliantly acted faked accent.Between official and shadow governance is the space Fletcher moves, bopping and weaving. Fletcher, the main character we all watched Porridge for, is the survivor. He's not for the system or against the system to fight it, he just wants to get it off his back and get by (straight outta the book and movie 'The Spook Who Sat by the Door. Watch for his delivery of the line to a prison officer 'you, I, we are merely here to establish the status quo'.So yea, this old grimy film worked well as a conversation trigger on the 'how things were back then' theme, without any nostalgia, giving a new lease of life and relevance. Why was it a comedy unlike say HBO's brilliant Oz series? As the man said, if you going to tell people a painful truth you better make them laugh.Shadow Governance

Enoch Sneed Increasingly desperate to stay viable, in the 1970's the British film industry grasped at the idea of making movie versions of popular TV comedy shows, figuring audiences would go to the cinema to see what they enjoyed in their own homes every week. At first, these were very successful - the first 'On The Buses' film did better UK box office than 'Diamonds are Forever' in 1971. Soon the formula was stretched paper-thin by repetition and serious mistakes were made (the 'Rising Damp' film version failed because it had to move out of Rigsby's scruffy house, the fantasy of the setting was part of the show's success).Two major exceptions were both written by Dick Clement and Ian La Frenais. 'The Likely Lads', produced by British Lion in 1976, had a streak of melancholy and a view of human relationships which made for a very downbeat comedy indeed.For the film version of 'Porridge' Clement and La Frenais not only wrote the script but produced (through their own company Witzend) and directed. As a result the characters are not changed or put into the fish-out-of-water situations that were standard for this type of film, such as the staff of Grace Brothers holidaying on the 'Costa Plonka' (yes, that is supposed to make you laugh) in 'Are You Being Served?'.So we are safely in Slade Prison, just with a bit more location work. Fletcher, Godber, McKay, Barrowclough and 'Genial' Harry Grout are all in place. More important, they are still the characters from the TV series, not altered to fit the new medium. The relationships between them are less intimate because of the need to open the story out but it all works. The plot is slightly recycled from a TV Christmas special (Fletcher coerced by Harry Grout into helping in an escape attempt, although this time he does not realise he is being used) but it was worth revisiting.One interesting feature of the film is the lack of any music soundtrack. This keeps the link with the TV version and gives the action an air of reality, even though we are watching a comedy-fantasy version of prison life.Above all, it is funny - laugh out loud, gloriously funny. The TV half-hours are truly great programmes, but this version can stand proudly alongside them and be watched and enjoyed for itself. Very, very highly recommended.

Theo Robertson PORRIDGE is one of the most fondly remembered TV shows Britain has ever produced . It never hit the heights of comedy genius that John Cleese and Connie Booth managed with FAWLTY TOWERS but scriptwriters Ian La Frenais and Dick Clement managed to craft a character driven comedy set in a British prison with an excellent cast of comedy actors . This is the film version of the television show released almost two years after the final episode was broadcast What is striking is that how much this film version emulates the television comedy . The colourful characters are true to form with the bossy arrogant Mr Mckay , the naive Mr Barraclough , the prison Mr Big Grouty , the sneaky Ives , the posh educated Banyard , and the two protagonists who carried the show Lenny Godber and Norman Stanley Fletcher . Perhaps the biggest disappointment from the cast is the lack of on screen scary black Scotsman Mclaren due to scheduling difficulties involving Tony Osoba It's difficult to graft a strong plot onto a character driven comedy and a plot involving a prison breakout is perhaps a too obvious plot but at least the writers tried . Up until the escape we're kept amused by the snappy one liners the show was renowned for . It also contains some abrasive bitchy dialogue that sounds totally natural : " I bet if we brought Michael Parkinson and the Goodies you wouldn't have held them for questioning ? " " Probably not . But you didn't did you ? "All in all this is an effective film adaptation of a classic British sit-com

Spikeopath Porridge is a spin off film from the successful TV series of the same name that aired on British BBC1 between 1974 and 1977. It's directed by Dick Clement who also co-writes with Ian La Frenais. It stars Ronnie Barker, Richard Beckinsale, Fulton Mackay, Brian Wilde and Peter Vaughn. Lets face it, and lets be honest here, for many Brits who grew up with the TV show, Porridge is simply one of the greatest shows Britain has ever produced. Sharp and on the money in writing and characterisations, and boasting a cast that were always irresistible, it still manages to enthral millions today during continuous reruns on cable and satellite TV. In light of the regard and popularity the show had, it was perhaps inevitable that a film production was just a matter of time, because, well, all the great British comedies of the past had feature films made. But of course not all were particularly any good. So it's with much relief to find that the film version of Porridge is a very decent offering. The plot sees Fletcher (Barker) involved as the manager of the prison football team, to which, unbeknown to the wily old lag, is being used as a front for an escape attempt by Oakes (Barrie Rutter), and naturally the smarmy menace of Grouty (Vaughn) is pulling the strings. Fletcher & Godber (Beckinsale) then accidentally get caught up in the escape and thus have to break back into the prison before anyone catches them! This set-up is wonderful and makes for some very funny comedy, executed with aplomb by Barker, Mackay and co. True that taking the characters out of the confines of the prison strips away much of what made the TV series so special, but the characters are so strong, the actors chemistry so evident, film stands tall enough to not sully the reputation of the show. It's a delightful way to spend an hour and half with your feet up, as a stand alone film it entertains those not familiar with the TV show. While for us fans? It sits nicely alongside the show as an extended viewing of comic genius behind and in front of the camera. 8/10RIP fellas, your legacy lives on always.