Guide to Country Roads

Guide to Country Roads is the first in what has since become a string of absurd comedies from the team at Sixbananasinaknot Productions (great name by the way). Here with the first offering, in the style of those ridiculous old war-time public information videos, Guide to Country Roads, with the help of the lovely Timothy (Dion Kelly), finally highlights the dangers of the notorious Irish country roads and the perils and pitfalls those who dare to traverse them must be wary of.

What’s evident right away with Guide to Country Roads (and as is also very much true with the subsequent projects as well) is the natural edge writer/director Adam Boland has in their biting and witty tongue-in-cheek humour that they are then able to inject into this film and give it what it needs to not only allow the concept to work but most importantly be enjoyable, which it definitely is. Whether it's a jibe at James Corden, poking fun at Facebook or even some more left-field jokes about looking out for dangerous video-game pushers, it’s not a side-splittingly, laugh-out-loud raucous affair, but it is a film filled with unexpected comedic turns that will keep you on your toes and a smile on your face.

What does really help sell that comedy factor is the films black-and-white presentation style paired with some perfectly chosen music cues that fully realise its faithful style reminiscent of the type of videos the film is emulating with love. But while the overall look of the film is there, what gets in the way is the sound quality. The narration needed to be much clearer in its recording and is also often overpowered by the music, resulting in a sound quality that is a bit lacking and at times makes the narration hard to fully hear or comprehend, an issue that unfortunately finds its way into a few of Sixbananasinaknot’s other films as well.

That said, the delivery of that narration by Aaron Medd in terms of its character and comic timing is spot on, which when coupled together with Dion Kelly’s dead-on performance as the unassuming mock subject of this really authentic feeling PSA, makes it all fit together to create a great homage to all those ridiculous public information videos we've all seen before.

A little rough around the edges in terms of its production, but with everyone on board clearly pulling in the same direction and very much getting the brief, Guide to Country Roads shows that Sixbananasinaknot Productions have what it takes with their funny stuff.