Here at Stealth Media Films we blogged a few weeks ago
about the success of Mrs Browns Boys D Movie which was a massive hit at the UK
box office.
On the back of Mrs Brown Boys success comes another UK TV
show that’s turned into gold at the UK box office. The
Inbetweeners 2 follows on the success of the first
Inbetweeners film which back in 2011 was something of a surprise success at the
cinema.
Biggest
opening weekend of 2014
The sequel opened to a box office bonanza of £12.5 million over
one weekend, this sort of return rivals even the biggest US hits and has set
the record for the UK box office this summer so far. The Australian set youth
comedy looks set to dwarf the original in terms of box office success.
Choosing
to make a sequel to the first film seemed like a no-brainer when the Malia set
first film hit box office pay dirt in 2011. However, there are always risks
with follow-up films especially in the youth genre as the actors and characters
age. This so far hasn’t proved an issue so far with the massively successful
sequel.
What’s the story?
The
first film involved the lads first holiday abroad, this time the boys are at
University and Jay is on a gap year in Australia. Invariably, the lads make the
trip around the world to catch up with the antics of their buddy.
The
film is beautifully shot and makes the most of locations in Australia’s Gold
Coast. The direction, by series creators Iain Morris and Damon Beesley is more cinematic than the
original outing which felt a little like an extended episode of the original
show.
Striking a chord
Youth
films have often been a staple of the UK and world box office. George Lucas
made one of his biggest hits with American Graffiti back in 1974 – this went
onto be one of the most profitable films ever made. During the 80s the late
John Hughes made a career from teenage films such as Sixteen Candles, The
Breakfast Club and Ferris Buellers Day Off.
It
seems the very British growing pains of the Inbetweeners have struck a chord
with UK film goers of all ages. The Inbetweeners 2 has been said to be the last
outing of the characters, but with this sort of box office success we wouldn’t
be surprised to see them appear again in another film together.
Critical reaction
Reaction
to the film from the British press has so far been genuinely positive with a
few detractors due to some crudity in the humour. Here at Stealth Media Films
we’ll be keeping an eye on the trend for UK coming of age films over the next
few years, it seems the Inbetweeners 2 has really tapped into a market that’s
hungry for British youth humour.
