Garth Marenghi's Darkplace [DVD]

Being in the U.S., I was lucky to discover "Darkplace" early on because my wife and I are huge fans of The Mighty Boosh. We managed to see "Darkplace" because of friends in the UK, and fell in love with it instantly (and it recently aired on the SciFi Channel here in the States). I placed a pre-order for this DVD as soon as it was posted, and now the long wait with numerous dealys and re-scheduling is finally over!I have to say that this DVD is even better than the series itself. The real genius is in the extras and the commentaries, which stay completely "in character" throughout the disc. That is, we're not hearing or seeing behind-the-scenes from Matthew Holness and Richard Ayoade, but rather from Garth and Dean (and Todd! who steals the show more than half the time). I just thought it was brilliant, and I'm still laughing at certain lines as I recall them throughout the day.Further, the entire DVD is itself a brutal parody of TV DVDs, from the pompous self-important commentaries to the extras that might seem like gold to the producers, but are absolutely useless to the home viewer. Then there are little touches such as during the commentaries, the show soundtrack will occasionally peak in volume for no reason whatsoever, as if something important were happening. Or all the background noise and throat-clearing that gets picked up. All of this behind the scenes material is like a hilarious "story within the story" that make this one of the best DVDs of the year as Ayoade and Co. make fun of the DVD genre itself with the same wit that worked so well for "Darkplace" vs. 80s television.Richard, Matthew and Matt, if you see this, THANK YOU! This was better than a second series in every way! My wife and I really loved this DVD, probably the best one we've purchased all year, and certainly the funniest! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED, and DON'T FORGET THE COMMENTARIES!

In the genre which is horror-spoof this has to be the most perfectly made show I have seen. Each episode is interspersed with interviews of Garth, Dean and Todd - fictional characters from the show. It is a genius step to take as this kind of show simply cannot work without a nod to the camera - instead of doing it in the 'show' they do it outside which makes it work much, much better. The interviews are very funny too and show a depth to the fictional characters that you simply can't get otherwise - the depth makes it funnier.At first glance this show might seem a little 'obvious' but it is truly a work of sophistication where every joke, direction and sound is (clearly) executed precisely as they wanted it to be - very rare!I like it all the more since seeing 'Man to man with Dean Learner' as that show proved to me that these guys are genuinely brimming with talent and that makes this show all the more special - it's just a shame that most of the rest of the country aren't aficionados like myself and plenty of other reviewers because then I would see more of their work.Although my review is clearly glowing it's a difficult DVD to recommend to the average person on the street but I would say that if you like comedies such as 'My Family' then you will very likely hate this. If you like most things from Steve Coogan (he isn't in this BTW) there is a good chance you will like this very much - as much guidance as I can give I'm afraid - I hope it helps.On a sidenote, the DVD has more than 60 minutes of extra interviews which are as good as the show itself. Double Bubble.Well done Matthew, Matt and Richard - keep up the fantastic work!!!!!!!

Having only recently discovered the Darkplace DVD, I decided that I must possess it so I could watch the episodes in the quality and style deserving of a product from the mind Merenghi -- and the first thing I must say is this DVD is NOT lacking for features. Read on!Upon opening the box, you're greeted with a booklet giving the uninitiated a run down of the series, the cast, and the circumstances surrounding itssudden disappearance in the 80's (it enjoyed a brief run in Peru) and triumphant re-release to the masses in 2004.The DVD itself sports a load of wonderful features, including interviews with Garth Merenghi, Todd Rivers, and Dean Learner who go into great depth about the circumstances surrounding filming, the various cast members, some unfortunate and fortunate deaths (such as the disappearance and strongly suspected death of Madeleine Wool) and many anecdotes including the loss of over 60 of the episodes in the Thames.Additional features include some rare behind the scenes footage of Garth and company, a list of beautiful cast and set photos, and the icing on the cake, a full playback of the 'One Track Lover' song as sung by Todd Rivers.Finally, there is a full commentary for each episode featuring Garth Merenghi, Todd Rivers, and Dean Rivers. To round out the package is a slick dvd menu that looks like a shot from Garth's living room, complete with a flickering television.If you are a fan of Garth's or just an admirer of the fantastique, I highly recommend you pick up the delightfully gruesome Darkplace DVD and hold it gently, as you would a lover.Voici, you're welcome!(Tongue planted firmly in cheek)

If you are into The I.T. Crowd and / or The Mighty Boosh then this stars a lot of the same crowd, but is even weirder in it's own way..The ''plot'' is this, back in the 70's or 80's a (fictional) trashy horror novelist wrote a TV series that just couldn't be shown at the time. But now with TV being so short of ideas now it is dug out of the archives and each episode is shown with an itroduction by the (completly full of himself) writer..The end result is not just great comedy-horror, but also a good dig at some of the standards of the time, especially institutional sexism.

A Brilliant show from start to finish. The added plus of Dean Learner's Man to Man is added icing.

Really good television program,

Maravillosa serie y maravillosa edición! Mención especial a los comentarios del director ;-)Con subtítulos en inglés y extras diversos.

Garth Marenghi's Darkplace has so many layers of humour. While I think the "interviews" and the show itself is extremely funny, I also found myself laughing while thinking about the show afterwards. About Garth and Learners reasoning for doing this and that in the production, the possible conflicts between staff, the problems with ediding the show and so on.The extra materials on the DVD are probably the most brilliant thing ever. Watching the series with commentaries ON gives the whole Garth/Darkplace universe a whole new dimension of comedy. Some of the things they point out made me almost die of laughter. Deleted scenes, interviews and stuff that gives more filling to the concept are also very good.It's not a show for the mainstream audience. I really think that the audience who will enjoy Darkplace the most, are people with experience within filmmaking. And of course, have watched some stuff from the 80's.

Von Garth Marenghi's Darkplace hätte ich wahrscheinlich nie etwas gehört, wäre sie nicht von Oliver Kalkofe am Ende eines seiner Bücher empfohlen worden. Dort wurde Darkplace als "die beste schlechteste 80er-Jahre-Fake-Mystery-Serie" bezeichnet, und das trifft es exakt. Hier ist alles äußerst liebevoll auf 80er-Low-Budget-Produktion getrimmt, die Handlung ist völlig abstrus, hätte aber durchaus von irgendeinem unterbezahlten Drehbuchschreiber aus jenem Jahrzehnt stammen können.Im Grunde dreht sich alles darum, dass im Krankenhaus Darkplace ständig mysteriöse und übernatürliche Dinge geschehen, die von dem Ärzteteam (welches gleichzeitig an eine Polizeieinheit erinnert) zurück in die Unterwelt verbannt werden müssen. So etwas passiert halt, wenn man ein Krankenhaus direkt über den Toren der Hölle errichtet. Erdacht wurde dies vom fiktiven Horrorromanautor Garth Marenghi (Matthew Holness), der in der Serie den Chefarzt Dr. Rick Dagless spielt. Kombiniert wird das mit unglaublich schlechten Kulissen (alleine das Modell des Krankenhauses für die Außenansicht ist grandios lächerlich), kitschigem 80er-Soundtrack, manchmal dilettantischer Kameraführung und schlechten schauspielerischen Leistungen.Besonders letztgenannter Punkt ist erwähnenswert: "Produzent" Dean Learner (Richard Ayoade), der in der Serie den Krankenhausaufseher Thornton Reed verkörpert, spielt so herrlich schlecht, dass es die helle Freude ist. Er verpasst seinen Einsatz, guckt in die Kamera, spricht und lacht völlig emotionslos und kann seinen Text oftmals nicht an einem Stück aufsagen, was völlig unpassende Schnitte zur Folge hat.Dann wäre da noch Todd Rivers (Matt Berry), der den coolen und hübschen Dr. Lucien Sanchez spielt, welcher mit übertrieben tiefer Stimme spricht, ständig mindestens eine Waffe bei sich trägt und bei Gefahr automatisch eine Kung-Fu-Pose einnimmt. Die letzte Hauptrolle spielt Madeleine Wool (Alice Lowe), sie übernimmt den Part der (selbstverständlich) blonden Ärztin Dr. Liz Asher, welche über psychokenetische Kräfte und jede Menge Haarspray verfügt. Angeblich ist sie nach dem Dreh der letzten Episode spurlos verschwunden.Jede Folge wird eröffnet mit einem Vorwort von Garth Marenghi, auch während der Episoden sind kurze Interviewpassagen , hauptsächlich mit ihm oder Produzent Dean Learner (aus späterer Sicht), eingebunden. Diese Passagen sind nicht minder auf positive Art schwachsinnig als die Handlungsstränge selbst, mich haben sie zumindest des Öfteren an die glorreichen Spinal Tap erinnert. Was soll ich sagen? "Garth Marenghi's Darkplace" ist das Lustigste, was ich in letzter Zeit zu sehen bekommen habe. Jede Menge Bonusmaterial gibt's noch obendrauf. Ton und Untertitel sind ausschließlich in englischer Sprache, die sollte man also schon beherrschen. Kaufen, es lohnt sich!