A black comedy based on historic murders

Burke and Hare (2010)
Duration: 91 minutes
Certified: 14
Directed by: John Landis
Starring: Simon Pegg, Andy Serkis, Isla Fisher, Tom Wilkinson, Jessica Hynes, Christopher Lee
KRS release

Simon Pegg returns under the direction of John Landis in a very unusual black comedy. It has been 12 years since Mr Landis took on directing duties, but here he shows he still has what it takes.

The director of three of my favourite films ever – Trading Places (1983), An American Werewolf in London (1981) and Blues Brothers (1980) – gives a deft touch to the black comedy genre by bringing together a mix of action and dark humour.

The film is based on a set of murders that took place in the 1820s in Edinburgh, Scotland, known as the Burke and Hare murders. Seventeen murders were carried out in all, with the scope of selling the victims’ bodies for medical study!

These murders were pivotal in highlighting the then crisis in medical education. The murders have become part of Scottish folklore and even the word “burking” – denoting the method of murder used – was introduced into the vocabulary.

In the film, the parts of William Burke and William Hare are played by two veterans: Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis. They are two Irish con-men who desperately need cash but have simply run out of ways of how to conjure it up.

One day Dr Knox (Tom Wilkinson) approaches them and makes a deal with them. He will give them a considerable amount of money for every cadaver they deliver to him. The doctor is in a race with another medic for fame and fortune and needs the bodies for further study.

Hare needs to support his wife and soon accepts, while Burke is more reluctant. However, the latter’s mistress Ginny (Isla Fisher) is always asking for more money and this leads him to accept the job. Meanwhile McLintock (Ronnie Corbett), the captain of the militia, starts noticing that people are disappearing and begins to investigate.

Mr Pegg and Mr Serkis carry the film forward on their own merit, avoiding the pitfalls that the script sometimes throws their way. The two are well balanced out by the performance of Ronnie Corbett, as he is precise and quite spot-on in his comical interventions.

Obviously enough, the humour is dark and black; most of the humour is based on the broad manner on murder, corpse-style slapstick and medical research.

We never really see Burke and Hare as two villains; they look more like two down-on-their-luck slobs who desperately need some money. If one wants to point fingers, it would be at the doctors who created the market! Here they are played really well by Tom Wilkinson and Tim Curry, while Hugh Bonneville is appropriately sleazy.

There are also nice cameos from the likes of Christopher Lee and Jenny Agutter. Isla Fisher is delightful to see but there does not seem to be much chemistry with Mr Pegg; he looks happier murdering in dark alleys than wooing the beautiful Ms Fisher.

The film develops its pacing well, and has a strong visual touch. While on paper the subject may not seem to be a laughing matter, Burke and Hare goes a long way to be hilarious and darkly comical.