Sitcom has sweetness and charisma but lacks laughs

Back in the 1990s, Ferran Adrià, head chef at the three-Michelin-starred El Bulli, pioneered a new type of cooking, which he referred to as “deconstructed cuisine”. In this revolution, a salad or sandwich was no longer a salad or sandwich; its ingredients were deconstructed and rebuilt in novel and interesting ways.

- By Nick Hilton

The technique proved a sensation, and, like all great fads, swiftly spread across the globe. Soon, a deconstructed cheesecake was as common as a regularly constructed one. Now, in the 2020s, the same thing has happened with the deconstructed romcom. Where once the breakdown of genre tropes and techniques felt exciting, it now feels passé, as in BBC Three’s new six-part sitcom, Film Club.

Aimee Lou Wood is Evie, a young woman suffering from debilitating agoraphobia following a breakdown six months ago. Now she’s back home with her mum, Suz (Suranne Jones), and little sister Izzie (Liv Hill), unable to get beyond their suburban driveway. “She’s 28 years old and can’t get past the bleedin’ bins!” laments her caring, but frustrated, single mother. Evie’s one respite from this torment is her weekly film club, where a group of friends join her in the garage for an immersive screening. Alien, The Wizard of Oz, Shawshank Redemption, Bridesmaids: with each week, Evie’s life seems to mirror the film on show. Prime among her concerns is whether she’s more in love with her sweet, ever-present boyfriend Josh (Adam Long) or her best friend, sensitive cinephile Noa (Nabhaan Rizwan).