Kinky Boots (2005) Movie Information:

Kinky Boots (2005) Directed by: Julian Jarrold Kinky Boots (2005) Written by: Geoff Deane, Tim Firth Kinky Boots (2005) Cast: Linda Bassett, Josh Cole, Gwenllian Davies, Joel Edgerton, Chiwetel Ejiofor

Kinky Boots (2005) U.S. Distributor: Miramax Kinky Boots (2005) U.K. Distributor: Buena Vista

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Kinky Boots (2005) Synopsis:

Charlie Price faces the impending shut down of the Northampton shoe factory that his family has owned and operated for generations. Just when he feels that all is lost, he has a chance encounter with Lola, a flamboyant transvestite cabaret star. Lola's desire for stylish, kinky boots for herself and her colleagues provides a glimmer of hope for the factory and its employees.

Kinky Boots (2005) Movie Review:

After inheriting the family men’s shoe business, Charlie Price (Edgerton) has to come to terms with the factory is struggling. After making a number of redundancies, Charlie still needs to do something to change the fortunes of the business. The answer comes in the shape of Lola (Ejiofor), a Drag Queen with a problem, as she can never find a sexy shoe that will fit her slightly bigger feet properly. Now all that Charlie has to do is change his factory into one that makes Kinky Boots.

There is one thing that the British film industry can do really well and that is produce films that put a comedic twist on an against the odds tale but can ‘Kinky Boots’ match the other successes?

After movies like ‘The Full Monty’, ‘Waking Ned’ and ‘Calendar Girls’, the British film industry seems to get it right most of the time when they bring a real life story to the silver screen. ‘Kinky Boots’ is no different. This is another inspirational story of the workingman who goes against the odds to make things better for not just himself but for his family, workmates and friends. Add to this some comedic moments and you have the perfect recipe for a hit movie in the UK as this is the kind of films that really hit with its homeland audience but while ‘Kinky Boots’ definitely has its heart in the right place it is missing the key ingredient of comedy.

This is a movie that is made to make you feel good and the tale of the ‘Price & Sons’ transformation from an ordinary men’s shoe factory into a maker of thigh length boots for men has all the potential to achieve this but it doesn’t quite have the correct fit. Instead of concentrating on the reaction of the staff at making the ‘new’ shoes for example, the film
descends into jokes and homophobic remarks aimed at Lola/Simon that might have actually happened at the time but don’t really fit the tone of the movie. This comes at the expense of Nick Frost, a gifted comedic actor (see ‘Shaun of the Dead’ or the TV series ‘Spaced’) who has to play it straight and become a character that you shouldn’t really like, wasting his talents.

This minor plot point aside, the rest of the film is a heart-warming tale of success against the odds. At the centre of the movie are two standout performances from the leading actors. Australian Joel Edgerton is starting to make a name for himself in the movie industry and his role as Charlie
Price will only make him more noticed. Stealing the entire film however is an outstanding performance from Britain’s best emerging talents Chiwetel
Ejiofor. As drag queen Lola, he commands your attention throughout, with a multifaceted performance that sees him sing, dance and provide the comedy for the movie. This is a performance that shows that he is a real talent in whatever genre he chooses. Add two this good performances from Sarah-Jane Potts, Jemima Rooper and Linda Bassett and you have a good cast to bring this inspirational story to life.

‘Kinky Boots’ is a feel good movie that works but doesn’t have enough laughs to make it a big hit as ‘The Full Monty’ or ‘Calendar Girls’ but it is still a good way of spending 106 minutes.

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Kinky Boots (2005) review written by: Jamie Kelwick