Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, the team behind the BBC series The Office and Extras, have made their first big screen collaboration with Cemetery Junction. Don't look to this film, newly available on DVD, for the uncomfortable, squirm-inducing humor of their television efforts. Gervais and Merchant, who co-scripted and co-directed, opted for a rather conventional approach to this coming of age tale. That's not to say the film isn't worth a look though, as there are numerous subtle pleasures throughout. Set in 1973 and loaded with pop hits of the period, its 95 minutes pass without wearing out their welcome. But the movie never truly distinguishes itself from similar nostalgia trips.
Freddie Taylor (Christian Cooke) is a young man desperate to avoid following in his father's footsteps. Rather than spend his life in the small English town of Cemetery Junction working in a factory, Freddie longs for a fulfilling career. Much to the dismay of his ne'er do well friends, he takes a job selling life insurance policies door to door. Freddie wears a suit to work now, which doesn't sit well with his his blue collar father (Ricky Gervais). The head of the insurance company, Mr. Kendrick (Ralph Fiennes), seems skeptical of Freddie's salesmanship abilities. He's no Mike Ramsey (Matthew Goode), Mr. Kendrick's prized employee and future son-in-law. Mike is engaged to Julie (Felicity Jones), who was a school acquaintance of Freddie's. Freddie had stronger feelings for Julie in those days, feelings that reawaken upon seeing her again.
The ramshackle plot unfolds fairly predictably. Freddie slowly realizes that his job selling insurance isn't likely to be any more rewarding than factory life. His friends don't share his sense of ambition. One of his buddies, Bruce (Tom Hughes), fits the "rebel without a cause" stereotype. Bruce comes from a broken home, blaming his alcoholic father for his mother's abandonment. Freddie's other friend, Snork (Jack Doolan), is the overweight "nerd" character that seems a requirement of nostalgia-based coming of age films. Getting drunk, chasing girls, and generally stirring up trouble no longer hold any appeal for Freddie. His friends don't seem quite ready to move on yet. The only girl Freddie does seem interested in pursuing is the one he can't have: Julie, an aspiring photographer. Freddie is sensitive enough to see that her fiance Mike is a boorish chauvinist, but struggles to communicate to her that life as a housewife won't likely be what she wants.
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