Kinky Boots DVD Review:

After inheriting the family men’s shoe business, Charlie Price (Edgerton) has to come to terms with the factory is struggling. After making a number of redundancies, Charlie still needs to do something to change the fortunes of the business. The answer comes in the shape of Lola (Ejiofor), a Drag Queen with a problem, as she can never find a sexy shoe that will fit her slightly bigger feet properly. Now all that Charlie has to do is change his factory into one that makes Kinky Boots.

There is one thing that the British film industry can do really well and that is produce films that put a comedic twist on an against the odds tale but can ‘Kinky Boots’ match the other successes?

After movies like ‘The Full Monty’, ‘Waking Ned’ and ‘Calendar Girls’, the British film industry seems to get it right most of the time when they bring a real life story to the silver screen. ‘Kinky Boots’ is no different. This is another inspirational story of the workingman who goes against the odds to make things better for not just himself but for his family, workmates and friends. Add to this some comedic moments and you have the perfect recipe for a hit movie in the UK as this is the kind of films that really hit with its homeland audience but while ‘Kinky Boots’ definitely has its heart in the right place it is missing the key ingredient of comedy.

This is a movie that is made to make you feel good and the tale of the ‘Price & Sons’ transformation from an ordinary men’s shoe factory into a maker of thigh length boots for men has all the potential to achieve this but it doesn’t quite have the correct fit. Instead of concentrating on the reaction of the staff at making the ‘new’ shoes for example, the film descends into jokes and homophobic remarks aimed at Lola/Simon that might have actually happened at the time but don’t really fit the tone of the movie. This comes at the expense of Nick Frost, a gifted comedic actor (see ‘Shaun of the Dead’ or the TV series ‘Spaced’) who has to play it straight and become a character that you shouldn’t really like, wasting his talents.

This minor plot point aside, the rest of the film is a heart-warming tale of success against the odds. At the centre of the movie are two standout performances from the leading actors. Australian Joel Edgerton is starting to make a name for himself in the movie industry and his role as Charlie Price will only make him more noticed. Stealing the entire film however is an outstanding performance from Britain’s best emerging talents Chiwetel Ejiofor. As drag queen Lola, he commands your attention throughout, with a multifaceted performance that sees him sing, dance and provide the comedy for the movie. This is a performance that shows that he is a real talent in whatever genre he chooses. Add two this good performances from Sarah-Jane Potts, Jemima Rooper and Linda Bassett and you have a good cast to bring this inspirational story to life.

‘Kinky Boots’ is a feel good movie that works but doesn’t have enough laughs to make it a big hit as ‘The Full Monty’ or ‘Calendar Girls’ but it is still a good way of spending 106 minutes.

Star Rating = * * *

PICTURE & SOUND

Presented in Widescreen 1.85:1 Anamorphic with a Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack, the transfer is good.

BONUS FEATURES

Audio Commentary with director Julian Jarrold and stars Joel Edgerton, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Sarah-Jane Potts
With their second attempt at the commentary, the director and his cast provide a chatty and fun track. The group talk passionately about the story, revealing what it was like to actually shoot in a real shoe factory. They also talk about the changes to the story from the original tale, highlighting the characters. Chiwetel Ejiofor also talks about his character and what is was like to be a drag queen. This is a good track that fans will enjoy listening to.

The Real Kinky Boots Factory (14.33 mins)
Director Julian Jarrold, producers Nick Barton, Peter Ettedgui and Suzanne Mackie, makeup artist Trfor Proud, costume designer Sammy Sheldon and stars Joel Edgerton, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Sarah-Jane Potts, Linda Bassett and Nick Frost join the original Kinky Boots factory owner Steve Pateman take you behind the scenes of the movie. Here we learn about the original story and how the screenplay was changed from the true tale. We also see how the factory was created and Lola and the drag queens.

Deleted Scenes (7.30 mins)
Entitled ‘Are you a Dorothy?’, ‘Hillside’, ‘Prettiest Star’ and ‘Charlie and Nicola in the factory’, these deleted scenes have optional commentary from director Julian Jarrold

Journey of a Brogue (1.15 mins)
See how a ‘Price & Sons’ shoe is actually made, as we go through the full construction of the piece of footwear.

Trailers
Previews of ‘The Brothers Grimm’, ‘Cinderella Man’ and ‘Annapolis’

OVERALL

For a low budget, British movie the DVD extras are very good. The featurette tells you everything you want to know, the deleted scenes are very watchable and the commentary track is a good listen. Fans should be very pleased.



Jamie Kelwick