To be brief: Dead Ringers is a British sketch show, with a group of impressionists performing various celebrities.
The cast themselves are weak. Very few of the impressions they do are really that much better than anyone could do. Most of the time they go for extreme exagerations just so you are sure who they are supposed to be. The costume department actually contributes more than the cast, truth be told. The main cast member, Jon Culshaw, is one of the best of the bunch, but he is simply a guy who is good at certain impressions. He should be playing the minor roles in a show like this, but since Dead Ringers is so weak, he is the best they have.
All the women are played by Jan Ravens. She doesn't do impressions so much as copy obvious guestures. She clearly enjoys doing the female newsreaders most, as they give her a chance to show off - and does them all the same way. Their is very little difference between any of these impressions. If she wasn't wearing elaborate costumes, standing on replica sets, you would not guess who she was supposed to be.
The sketches are, in general, very poor. Based around schoolboy type observations, they just elaborate on the same point over and over again, rather than setting up a punchline or going for plain silliness. You can imagine the scripts for these sketches: 'Lord of the Rings is long - elaborate for five minutes' and 'politicians are liars - repeat ad infinitum. It's hard to laugh unless you're under twelve. These guys are average impressionists, poor comedians, and terrible writers.
Watching Dead Ringers, only about 70% of the time is it clear who the characters are supposed to be. Comparing this to Alistair McCowan's work is embarassing; let alone Rory Bremner's, whose impressions are incredibly accurate. What makes it worse is that those involved in Dead Ringers clearly think it's so naughty and clever; much in the same way a ten year old does when trying to be 'badass' to impress his classmates.
Dead Ringers is an embarassment for all involved, and it's a shame it even reached TV when there are far more intresting, creative people out there with fresh ideas. The BBC clearly saw the popularity of impression shows, and wanted another - and the show seems to coast on this. Taken on it's own merits, Dead Ringers should never have been broadcast.
The cast themselves are weak. Very few of the impressions they do are really that much better than anyone could do. Most of the time they go for extreme exagerations just so you are sure who they are supposed to be. The costume department actually contributes more than the cast, truth be told. The main cast member, Jon Culshaw, is one of the best of the bunch, but he is simply a guy who is good at certain impressions. He should be playing the minor roles in a show like this, but since Dead Ringers is so weak, he is the best they have.
All the women are played by Jan Ravens. She doesn't do impressions so much as copy obvious guestures. She clearly enjoys doing the female newsreaders most, as they give her a chance to show off - and does them all the same way. Their is very little difference between any of these impressions. If she wasn't wearing elaborate costumes, standing on replica sets, you would not guess who she was supposed to be.
The sketches are, in general, very poor. Based around schoolboy type observations, they just elaborate on the same point over and over again, rather than setting up a punchline or going for plain silliness. You can imagine the scripts for these sketches: 'Lord of the Rings is long - elaborate for five minutes' and 'politicians are liars - repeat ad infinitum. It's hard to laugh unless you're under twelve. These guys are average impressionists, poor comedians, and terrible writers.
Watching Dead Ringers, only about 70% of the time is it clear who the characters are supposed to be. Comparing this to Alistair McCowan's work is embarassing; let alone Rory Bremner's, whose impressions are incredibly accurate. What makes it worse is that those involved in Dead Ringers clearly think it's so naughty and clever; much in the same way a ten year old does when trying to be 'badass' to impress his classmates.
Dead Ringers is an embarassment for all involved, and it's a shame it even reached TV when there are far more intresting, creative people out there with fresh ideas. The BBC clearly saw the popularity of impression shows, and wanted another - and the show seems to coast on this. Taken on it's own merits, Dead Ringers should never have been broadcast.