Fackham Hall – This Rapid-Fire, Humorous Takeoff on Downton That's Refreshingly Throwaway.

Maybe the feeling of an ending era around us: after years of dormancy, the parody is making a comeback. This summer witnessed the re-emergence of this playful category, which, at its best, skewers the self-importance of excessively solemn genre with a barrage of heightened tropes, sight gags, and dumb-brilliant double entendres.

Unserious times, it seems, give rise to self-awarely frivolous, laugh-filled, refreshingly shallow fun.

A Recent Addition in This Silly Wave

The newest of these goofy parodies is Fackham Hall, a Downton Abbey spoof that pokes fun at the easily mockable self-importance of gilded English costume epics. The screenplay comes from UK-Irish comic Jimmy Carr and helmed by Jim O'Hanlon, the feature has plenty of material to draw from and exploits every bit of it.

Starting with a absurd opening all the way to its outrageous finale, this entertaining aristocratic caper crams all of its hour and a half with gags and sketches running the gamut from the puerile all the way to the genuinely funny.

A Mimicry of Aristocrats and Servants

In the vein of Downton, Fackham Hall offers a pastiche of overly dignified aristocrats and overly fawning servants. The story centers on the hapless Lord Davenport (portrayed by an enjoyably affected Damian Lewis) and his literature-hating wife, Lady Davenport (Katherine Waterston). After losing their male heirs in various tragic accidents, their aspirations now rest on finding matches for their two girls.

The junior daughter, Poppy (Emma Laird), has achieved the dynastic aim of betrothal to the suitable kinsman, Archibald (a perfectly smarmy Tom Felton). Yet when she backs out, the onus shifts to the unmarried elder sister, Rose (Thomasin McKenzie), who is a spinster of a woman" and and holds radically progressive notions concerning female autonomy.

Its Humor Succeeds

The film achieves greater effect when satirizing the stifling norms imposed on pre-war ladies – a subject often mined for earnest storytelling. The stereotype of idealized womanhood provides the richest material for mockery.

The plot, as one would expect from a purposefully absurd send-up, is of lesser importance to the gags. The writer serves them up arriving at an amiably humorous clip. There is a killing, an incompetent investigation, and a forbidden romance involving the roguish pickpocket Eric Noone (Ben Radcliffe) and Rose.

The Constraints of Lighthearted Fun

The entire affair is for harmless amusement, though that itself has limitations. The dialed-up absurdity inherent to parody can wear after a while, and the comic fuel in this instance diminishes in the space between sketch and a full-length film.

At a certain point, you might wish to retreat to the world of (at least a modicum of) reason. Yet, one must admire a wholehearted devotion to the artform. Given that we are to distract ourselves unto oblivion, it's preferable to laugh at it.