Frankie Howerd: Rather You Than Me

Frankie Howerd: Rather You Than Me (2008) -

I seemed to recall enjoying this biographic film a lot more the first time around. Maybe it was the titillating sexual bits that aroused my attention at the time, but I certainly felt that I would have given David Walliams awards for his role as the leading man Frankie Howerd back then, but actually on this second viewing I wasn't sure that he was actually all that amazing.

I've never really liked Dave as an artist anyway, but he made Frankie out to be a bit of a perve here, he was greasy and lecherous in a seedy way. I could however see that there were perhaps some blurred lines that had to be dealt with regarding his suppressed sexuality and feelings of shame, that could only have been done in that sort of way, but it didn't endear me to the real Frankie.

While David did achieve some of the mannerisms and the inflections of the 'Up Pompeii' (1969-70 & 1971) star, I didn't feel that he delivered his rendering of the comedian as well as many of the others that I've seen from the same biopic films - Michael Sheen as Kenneth Williams in 'Fantabulosa!' (2006) for one and Daniel Rigby & Bryan Dick as Morecambe and Wise in 'Eric & Ernie' for another.

Rafe Spall however certainly stood out as Howerd's Manager and life partner Dennis Heymer. I think this might have been the first thing that I saw him perform in and the one that made me appreciate him as an actor to the point where I watch almost everything that he turns up in.

In a lot of ways the film was more about Heymer than of Frankie, with the star used as a vehicle to tell Dennis' story instead, which I didn't mind, but felt it was off topic and not what I'd turned up for.

Unfortunately, because of Frankie's own personal issues with being gay and what seemed like a mental health issue of some sort, it made being a homosexual almost appear to be as dirty and wrong as Frankie thought it was, but I wasn't sure if that was deliberate. I supposed that because of the time the film was set, between the 1950's and the 1960's, there was a lot of seedy get togethers behind closed doors, but as the film was depicting what was most likely a loving relationship in reality, there wasn't a lot of the niceties of a romance. Maybe if it had been 15-20 minutes longer it could have included some light in their couples life as well as what seemed like a lot of dark. Surely Dennis didn't stay with him for all of those years without feeling some affection towards Frankie? And although his reasoning for that was shown in little bits, it was very subtle and I personally would have liked to have seen a lot more affection between them.

I still enjoyed the story and generally the artistic and sometimes thoughtful way that the film was made. As someone who longs to be a part of it all I've always appreciated tales of celebrity, so it was interesting to see how one of those that I've laughed at and enjoyed watching had made it through each day to keep entertaining, despite some low points in his career, that seemed to mar the high ones for him.

Not a bad film, but I thought that it could have been a really great one with a bit more attention.

699.02/1000.

I feel the other reviewers have been unfair in their reviews of this TV film. It received as many stars in the IMDb ratings as Hancock and Joan but not quite as much as the more viewed Steptoe and Hughie Green films in this quartet of dramatic biographies. These ratings are not reflected in the few reviews so far submitted. The film also received a RTS Television Award for Best Production Design.

The reason to see this film is what all reviewers have agreed on and that is the superb acting involved. David Walliams is far better than could be expected as Frankie Howerd whilst Rafe Spall gives his best performance so far as Dennis Heymer. Mention should also be mentioned of the wonderful acting support from Dilys Laye and Melanie Hill as the two mothers who had such a strong influence on the lives of their sons.

I found this film far less predictable, more dramatic and more satisfying than the other three films (listed in the Trivia section). Yes, the film is really about both Frankie Howerd and Dennis Heymer and perhaps should have been called Howerd and Dennis to complement Hancock and Joan. But this was a wise decision on the part of the filmmakers as it would have been too depressing to dwell on Howerd's depressive character when Dennis's love for Howerd and its many trials is where the drama lies. Although the portrait of a difficult relationship I did find myself laughing aloud sometimes, mainly due to Spall's superb performance.

Criticism has been levelled at the fact that the film dwells on Howerd's troubled personal life and not on his pleasant public persona. That is true just as Michael Sheen's Kenneth Williams: Fantabulosa! dwelt on Williams's dark side but that is not a criticism but a dramatic choice. However it has to be said that gay love and naked gay sex is portrayed unflinchingly and so this film is crucially different to the other three and will not be liked by anyone suffering from homophobia.

Dennis Heymer is working as a waiter when he first meets Frankie Howerd, who is famous but is not having the best period of his career. At first their interactions are little more than homosexual trysts followed by awkwardness and Dennis heading home but with persistence Dennis manages to form a sort of relationship with Howerd. A difficult character to love, this film follows the intimate and professional relationship between the two through personal tragedy and a revival of Howerd's career.

I didn't do it on purpose but my brief plot summary points to the problem with this film in the way that it seems to be more about Dennis than Frankie Howerd and indeed that is how the film seems to play out. Rather than just using Dennis as a narrative device (a "way in" to the character of Howerd) the film puts him as the main character and so for much of it we are following his story rather than Howerd's or, where Howerd does something we get the event not as something that happened but as how it emotionally impacted on Dennis. In terms of general story-telling this is all well and good and I was reasonably interested by it, however in a film that was meant to be about Frankie Howerd it only serves to annoy and detract.

It was a real shame because the other "Curse of Comedy" films had been pretty good and focused on the subjects so I'm not sure why this one managed to miss the mark so badly. In terms of general impression Wailliams does pretty well as Howerd but he falls down in key areas. The main failing I do not think is really his because it is with the character and the material and focus is not there in the making to help him with this. The secondary failing is that Wailliams' Howerd is not funny – and I say this as a fan of the great man. Spall's performance is better but again this may be because the material offered him more to work with. The supporting cast is solid but they cannot make up for the material and focus of delivery.

I was looking forward to Rather You Than Me because I had just watched the really good "Curse of Steptoe" and do like Howerd and I was disappointed that this film seemed more interested in Dennis, leaving Frankie Howerd a secondary character in a film that was meant to be about him.

Something only the British could do: turn a national treasure into a boring, kitchen sink subject matter. I agree with what others have said; Raif Spall and David Walliams do a good acting job, but the story is hopelessly lackluster. I recently watched Howerd on some old Michael Parkinson interviews, and there's a day and night difference between what's depicted in this movie and what Howerd was actually like. He came over as an articulate, charming, open person who was remarkably frank (no pun intended). No wonder his sister didn't like this film. My recollection is that Haymer didn't like it either, even though it's essentially about him with Howerd tagged on. This is the sad fate that lies in store for successful Brit comedians: an inaccurate, depressing, posthumous biopic that misrepresents their life as if it were some kind of Greek tragedy that was doomed to failure from the start.

This is a wonderful piece that rightly centres Frankie's relationship and his family history. It's isn't a comedy. It's a careful examination of how someone's upbringing informs their choices, and how gay love can be expressed in public and private at this repressive time. Rafe Spall is a revelation.