Are You Being Served? (1977)

User Rating:

3.8/10   

Director:

Bob Kellett

Writers:

David Croft (BBC television series)
Jeremy Lloyd (based on the BBC television series written by)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Comedy

Tagline:

They're Free!! Ready to Serve You on the Big Screen ! [UK]

Plot:

The staff of Grace Bros. take a trip to Costa Plonka while the department is being remodeled.

Plot Keywords:

Holidays | Revolt | Farce | Sequel | Department Store

Cast

John Inman	...	Mr. Wilberforce Clayborne Humphries
Mollie Sugden	...	Mrs. Betty Slocombe
Frank Thornton	...	Captain Stephen Peacock
Trevor Bannister	...	Mr. Dick Lucas
Wendy Richard	...	Miss Shirley Brahms
Arthur Brough	...	Mr. Ernest Grainger
Nicholas Smith	...	Mr. Cuthbert Rumbold
Harold Bennett	...	Young Mr. Grace
Arthur English	...	Mr. Beverley Harman
Karan David	...	Conchita
Glyn Houston	...	Cesar Rodriguez
Andrew Sachs	...	Don Carlos Bernardo
Derek Griffiths	...	The Emir
Nadim Sawalha	...	The Emir's Interpreter
Penny Irving	...	Miss Nicholson

Also Known As:

'Are You Being Served?': The Movie

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

New Zealand:PG | Australia:PG | UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1987)

Filming Locations:

Elstree Film and TV Studios, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England, UK

Company:

Anglo-EMI Productions Ltd.

Trivia:

Although most were experienced film-actors, the cast found it odd to shoot without the feedback from a studio audience that they enjoyed whilst recording at the BBC.

Quotes:

Mr. Dick Lucas: [Mr. Humphries waltzes into the airport in a pink outfit] Oh blimey, it's the sugar plum fairy!

Movie Connections:

References The Guns of Navarone (1961)

Worth a viewing? It depends.

If you're a fan of the BBC series, this movie is worth watching just as a curiosity – it's fun to see these much-beloved characters on holiday and up to their usual shenanigans – but honestly, there's not much artistic value in it as a stand-alone work, and if you weren't familiar with the characters, it wouldn't make much sense. The sets are low-budget, the special effects laughable, and, as noted previously, much of the dialog is lifted directly and without revision from various episodes. It seems to me that someone was just attempting to cash in on the popularity of the series without putting much effort or financing into it. Given the talent of the cast and the creative synergy that they shared, it could've been much more than it is.

As a fan of "Fawlty Towers" as well, I have to say that Andrew Sachs is a delight as Don Carlos Bernardo – fancy Manuel finally running his own hotel!