MR. KRISPIE

WARNING: Includes spoilers!

It’s not as good as the original, is it? That’s the sticking point with this remake of Mr. Krispie, which is an almost shot-for-shot recreation but lacks... something. It might be as close as you can get to its predecessor but even with the same director, actors and camera set-ups nothing’s gonna be exactly the same; no one will move or talk the same way or at the same pace, and all those little differences add up to one big difference come the end credits. This is a mild case of Grudge-itis rather than the full-on Van Sants, but even so... it falls short.

Ben Pavord is Mr. Krispie, a pathetic loner whose only joy in life is eating Rice Krispies, picking out the bad ones and noting them on a tally chart! It’s frickin’ genius, and despite its hasty schedule the original is my favourite of all the Hanover Pictures films, yes yes. It’s a quirky, original little movie, more unassuming and low key than stuff like Katie’s but far more effective. It had an effortlessness sorely lacking here, and small changes that have been made between the two, intended to shore up the story and correct clangers, only prove the point that there was no need to do it in the first place.

So, that’s two paragraphs taken up with slagging this off in comparison to the original... can I make it three? Nah, let’s move on. Ben is excellent as the title character, bar a few ill-advised moments of gurning which are less Mr. Krispie, more Mr. Bean. He’s very funny and pretty poignant at times; such a sad face when he’s sitting by the window! The scene in which poor old Krispie is harassed by a bully (Jon Napier) as he makes his way home with a new box of cereal made me go “Awww!” - until the story takes a darker turn, which is not only shocking but made me feel like a sucker for pitying him in the first place.

Back on the downside, though, and the lonely existence of Mr. Krispie borders on dull here thanks to tortoisey editing. The urge to hit fast forward shouldn’t emerge in a ten minute movie. The recasting of the bullies deflates their scenes a little, with the inclusion of a voice-of-reason girlfriend sapping them of their nastiness. Jon’s line hinting at the fate of the neighbours (“Haven’t seen that cat in quite a while actually - now that you mention it, haven’t seen the owners, either”) stands out in a scene that’s otherwise all about his treatment of Krispie; again, in a film this short, blatant nudges aren’t necessary. The last shot is, I think, supposed to either make us feel sorry for the bully because his girlfriend storms off, or suspect that he’ll become the next victim, but either way it hits a bum note by taking the focus away from Krispie and injecting sympathy into a character who doesn’t deserve it.

Really, though, these little specifics aren’t too bad, it’s just the general sense of the film not shaping up in comparison to its dad - hey, three.