Why, just why?

That was the question I was asking having sat through Dad’s Army: The Movie.

I may be in the minority for my generation to have not only seen but loved the original version of Dad’s Army with Arthur Lowe and John Le Mesurier and will still watch the repeats on a Saturday night.

Despite the quality of the cast, Toby Jones, Bill Nighy, Michael Gambon and Catherine Zeta Jones, this film missed the mark, failing to capture the quaintness and humour that makes the original so beloved.

It is a film filled with missed opportunities, to nod to the original and warm the hearts of fans and win them over. There is only use of the iconic “Stupid Boy” while Jones’ catchphrase “Don’t Panic” appears in a very different style.

As much as I like Bill Nighy, he only ever plays Bill Nighy, and I never really believed him as Sergeant Wilson.

It also felt like Catherine Zeta-Jones was phoning in her performance as Rose Winters and it never felt like she portrayed any real threat despite being the films’ primary villain.

That’s not say it was all bad.

The final scene on the beach is great fun and was something the TV show could never do due to budget restrictions.

While the increased presence of the Walmington-on-Sea women is a brilliant move on the part of the writers, and at several points they threaten to steal the film from the men.

Blake Harrison who is fantastic as Private Pike, perfectly pitching his child-like innocent with a desire to grow-up and become a man, and manages to make you forget Ian Lavender’s performance for the duration of the film, which is no discredit to Ian, but rather a compliment to Blake.

Overall this film fails on several counts, fans of the original won’t like it, while the younger generations just won’t be interested.

E