IN BRITISH COMEDY BRIAN ANDCHARLES,A LONELY INVENTOR BUILDS HIMSELF A PECULIAR ROBOT FRIEND. WE TALK TO THE CAST AND CREW ABOUT 2022’S MOST ECCENTRIC BUDDY MOVIE

WORDS OLLY RICHARDS

Specs machina: Brian (David Earl) with invention and pal Charles (Chris Hayward is in there somewhere);

HERE IS A BROAD SCALE OF IMPRESSIVENESS WHEN IT COMES TO robots in cinema. You’ve got your top-of-the-range Transformers, with lots of guns and the ability to fly/drive/squash houses. You’ve got your less weaponised options, like WALL•E or Short Circuit’s Number 5, which have just a few gizmos and a lot of sass. Or there’s your children’s plaything level, like Ron’s Gone Wrong’s titular machine — basically iPads with a personality. Very low on that scale is Charles.

In terms of technical wizardry, Charles is quite possibly cinema’s crappest robot. Comprised of a one-eyed mannequin head, an old washing machine and a Speak & Spell voice box, Charles is seven feet of bad engineering that looks like Patrick Moore trying to digest a sideboard. He is nevertheless the star of one of the most original and charming British comedies of recent years.

Brian And Charles is the story of one lonely man’s fear of life and a robot’s discovery of its endless possibilities. Brian (David Earl) lives alone in a remote Welsh town. His only human interactions are brief, awkward conversation with the owner of the local shop; blushing pleasantries to Hazel (Louise Brealey), a woman just as lonely as him; and occasional bullying by a local farmer, Eddie (Jamie Michie). Brian prefers to spend his time in isolation, ‘inventing ’ absolutely useless objects, like a bag made of pine cones or “trawler nets for shoes”.

In a moment of overly ambitious inspiration, Brian decides to build a robot out of things he has lying around his workshop. Upending all scientific logic, the robot not only works, but shows signs of rudimentary intelligence. As Brian tries to teach his new friend about the dangers of the world and Charles begins to notice its wonders, a weird little buddy comedy grows into a life-affirming piece that has already been a hit at the Sundance Film Festival. It’s quite an achievement for a film that began its life with a stand-up comedian repeatedly bombing on stage.