MovieChat Forums > Game-On (1995) Discussion > Ben Chaplin RULED!

Ben Chaplin RULED!

posted 12 years ago by heisenberg83
6 replies | jump to latest

Easily the best Matthew. I WISH they'd made more than 1 series with Ben Chaplin as Matthew. He made the character so odd and interesting.

[–] fingazmc 11 years ago

100% agree. Nothing against the second Mathew (sorry can't remember the actors name atm) but it will always be Ben in my mind. I didn't evem know the second and third series existed until about 5 years later, but itnjust wasn't the same...

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[–] MuteBanana 11 years ago

I don't blame Ben Chaplin going to Hollywood. He's a talent. Just a shame he's spent so much time out of the spotlight. Very funny guy and a great actor.

[–] kellymariekitty 10 years ago

Na he was nice looking and a good actor but I preferred neil sturke.
The first Matt was horrible, maybe it was the script but he was ruder, seemed to bully Martin, ate his food, and generally seemed a horrible person. He seemed sleazy as well always trying it on with Mandy.

Neil Sturke seemed to make the character nicer, funnier and even though he still messed about with Martin, he seemed to have a laugh and not bully him like Ben chapman seemed to.

All in all, I prefer neil, he was brilliant.

[–] John_Dee_007 10 years ago

The first Matt was horrible, maybe it was the script but he was ruder, seemed to bully Martin, ate his food, and generally seemed a horrible person. He seemed sleazy as well always trying it on with Mandy.

It was those very qualities, coupled with his obvious good looks, that added to the sadness of the character suffering from agoraphobia. His rude, tough guy exterior was really just a fragile shell suppressing the memory of his parent's car accident. That was the whole point of his character!

The show hinged on Chaplin's performance, because without it, it was just a generic sitcom with canned laughter. You can only do so many jokes about shagging before it gets old. You need some humanity to keep the audience invested. And that's why the show failed after Chaplin left, because Sturke was unable to portray those attributes effectively. It was just bad casting.

EDSKRPHW

[–] tphughes-872-671518 10 years ago

I couldn't agree more. Chaplin put in a better performance of the character intricacies. His good looks and impressive physique tie-in perfectly with the surfer he once was and the rudeness and trying it on with Mandy reflect a frustration that the flat is now his universe. He bullies Martin, trying to keep control of something in his life, and Mandy is the only woman available to a man in his sexual prime.

It's interesting that, when re-casting, the producers went for something far removed from the orginal character and went for someone physically, appearance and character closer to Martin. The character softened under Stuke, but more because he doesn't have the same confidence and build that Chaplin had so couldn't put in the physical attributes.

No disrespect to those who prefer Stuke, and don't get me wrong some lines in the later series were very well written for him and Chaplin wouldn't have been able to deliver them as well, but for me, Ben Chaplin is THE Matthew Malone and I would put money on Game on running to 4, a slim chance of 5, series had Ben Chaplin not been offered the Hollywood opportunity.

[–] loveagoodstory 10 years ago

Totally. Ben Chaplin took the character much further than the sitcom average. Samantha Janus did the same with Mandy, taking her far away from just the daft bimbo she could have been played as. They really transformed this show from good to completely brilliant for me.

Neil Stuke was the strangest piece of miscasting I think I've ever seen in something I followed closely. The second series onwards were pretty-much unwatchable for me because such a great chance with a great creation seemed to have been flushed down the bog.

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