A Review of A Family Affair

A Family Affair is quiet mayhem at its most characteristically British: an unrated tranquil retreat, a fumbling manager trying to satisfy his in-laws, creditors out for blood, an impromptu property auction.

Filming took done in Cape Town over 12 days, despite the fact that the story is set over a single day in the British countryside; this explains the abundance of sun and the enviable absence of rain. Veteran of the comedy circuit Joe Wilkinson plays Edward, the incompetent manager and co-investor of a rustic resort, and leads the caper—into his first main role, no less.

Edward works with his wife Helen (Laura Aikman) to run the silent spiritual retreat, but harsh resident reviews and the bank’s impending foreclosure have other ideas.

Things are getting off to a rough start with Edward’s newly widowed father Albert (David Sherwood) arriving with a considerably younger date, Jessica (Jazzara Jaslyn), and Helen’s parents Margaret (Jane Asher) and Walter (Michael Maxwell) scheduled to visit for their 40th wedding anniversary party.

Read More:

Review of “Falling”: A Dark Family Drama from Viggo Mortensen’s Directorial Debut

And things are about to get much worse when Helen finds out that the bank has scheduled a public auction of the manor to take place on her parents’ anniversary. Fortunately for Edward, the manor’s resident spiritual “guru,” Rhys (Colin Hoult), is there to mediate conflicts and keep the peace. Pardon the pun. Disorder results from potential buyers stumbling around inspecting the property, Margaret nodding off to Rhys’s herbal tea, and Jessica staring at Walter.

Beneath the immensely hilarious shenanigans is a poignant meditation on family, love, and grief (puns abound). Even though his in-laws, especially Margaret, don’t really like Edward, he still tries to win Helen over by pleasing them. Furthermore, it’s clear that Albert and his late wife didn’t have a perfect marriage. Unfortunately, Wilkinson and Aikman don’t get much screen time together because of their odd but actually endearing connection.

Read More:

Everything We Know About My Spy: The Eternal City’s Release Date, Cast, Story, and Trailer

South African writer-director Warren Fischer has expressed candidly how British comedy, particularly Blackadder and Monty Python, has influenced him, and this is evident in his work. Decades of absurdist humour have culminated in A Family Affair, a bizarre series of events devoid of explosive resolution but brimming with rich drama. A bloopers reel is included in the credits, which is a nice feature. These should be brought back!