Review: THE UNFRIEND, Wyndham’s Theatre
Photo credit: Manuel Harlan
A friendship struck up on a cruise leads to a possible serial killer inviting herself to the sleepy suburban home of a married couple and their two teenage children. It sounds like the perfect recipe for tension and comedy, right?
Steven Moffat has become a household name in recent years as the writer behind the critically-acclaimed Doctor Who and Sherlock series. Unfortunately, The Unfriend isn’t quite worthy of his reputation. The jokes and punchlines have been heard a thousand times before. The final gag is so predictable that we were waiting for the characters to catch up. The funniest scene in the play is a toilet-humour laden exchange, made amusing by the stellar comic timing and physical comedy of Lee Mack and Sarah Alexander.
The play is at its most entertaining when Mack - a working husband who keeps an eye on current affairs just to be angry about something - mimes, squirms and harangues his way out of impossibly awkward situations with physicality reminiscent of Basil Fawlty. The ongoing exchanges with his passive aggressive, impossibly boring neighbour (played brilliantly by Nick Sampson) are perhaps the most relatable and genuinely funny parts of the play.
From beginning to end, the characters exist as one-dimensional stereotypes. A bickering but happily married couple, two grumpy teenagers, a boring neighbour, and an eccentric American visitor. They are sadly underexplored and, in terms of character arc, they go from being normal to just being a little bit nicer. Yet, Lee Mack and Sarah Alexander’s Debbie and Peter make an entertaining couple to watch. Their exchanges are well-timed and they bounce off one another’s energy, doing their best with the dialogue given.
A tour de force of eccentric, Republican energy, Francis Barber steals the show as Elsa, the ‘holiday friend’ who invites herself to stay. However, she too is let down by a predictable script. Her background as a suspected serial killer does nothing to increase the tension as, it turns out, she’s just a very nice person. Ultimately, from Elsa’s arrival to her departure, there is no plot to storytell and no character development; the cast are left to make the best of the excessive fart jokes.
Robert Jones’ set design is an intricate, realistic depiction of middle-class suburbia. Although the house itself seems spacious enough, the design skilfully portrays a sense of always being looked in on by nosy neighbours (as indeed they are). Moments of video and animation (designed by Andrzej Goulding) are also welcome additions.
If you’re looking for a few easy laughs and want to switch off for a couple of hours then head on down to the Wyndham’s. Ultimately though, The Unfriend brings us nothing new. The cast are limited by a script that gives them no room to play.
** Two stars
Reviewed by: Eliza Harris
The Unfriend is currently booking at the Wyndham’s Theatre until 9 March, with tickets available here.
