Burke And Hare - Edinburgh Funny Serial Killers

The real story of Burke and Hare, the serial killers who terrorised Edinburgh for a year in the mid-nineteenth century, is a dark and disturbing tale of cold-blooded murder and greed. William Burke and William Hare were Irish immigrants who murdered 17 people in a killing spree that lasted from November 1827 to October 1828, selling the bodies of their victims to Dr Robert Knox for dissection. They were eventually arrested, and Burke was executed after Hare confessed and testified against him.

Burke and Hare, director John Landis’ first feature film in 12 years, doesn’t pretend to tell the real story of the infamous murderers: kicking off with a disclaimer that it is a true story “except the parts that aren’t”, it is a black comedy with a bit of romance thrown in on the side.

Simon Pegg and Andy Serkis, both with convincing Irish accents, play the two Williams, a couple of loveable rogues just trying to make a living in the dirty streets of Edinburgh, and not doing a very good job of it. They get their chance for big bucks when Hare’s drunken wife Lucky (Pegg’s Spaced co-star Jessica Hynes) entrusts to them the disposal of the body of one of her dead lodgers. The duo decide to try their luck with corrupt but ambitious doctor Robert Knox (Tom Wilkinson), who rewards them handsomely for their delivery. Knox is desperate to impress King George IV with a photographic map of the human body, but a rival doctor (Tim Curry) has used his influence to cut off Knox’s access to cadavers, and so he instructs Burke and Hare to keep the corpses coming – “the fresher the better”. The duo subsequently attempt to acquire fresh bodies, while Burke also romances a “hoor” turned actress named Ginny (Isla Fisher, with a dodgy Scottish accent) who may or may not only be interested in him for his money. But with suspicions rising over so many disappearances, it soon becomes difficult for them to stay one step ahead of the law.

There are very few laugh-out-loud moments, but Burke and Hare is a perfectly likeable, light-hearted romp all the same. It plays like a who’s who of British television, with Bill Bailey, Stephen Merchant and even Ronnie Corbett making an appearance. Most entertaining is Paul Whitehouse as a drunk who the boys attempt to kill by pushing him down a set of stone stairs. At times, however, the tone does jar slightly: a lot of the humour comes from the duo’s attempt to kill their victims, and we have to consider if a comedy about serial killers is really all that tasteful.

Overall, Burke and Hare is an enjoyable and entertaining comedy, although it doesn’t quite end Landis’ run of misfires. But he made An American Werewolf in London - so all is forgiven.

CMD