Channel 4 quietly releases all episodes of year's 'funniest' comedy

A fresh Channel 4 comedy series launched last night leaving viewers thoroughly split. The surreal six-part sitcom Make That Movie debuted its opening two episodes on Channel 4 on Thursday evening (May 28), with the complete series simultaneously released for binge-watching on the broadcaster's streaming platform. The mockumentary chronicles director Sam (played by Australian comic Sam Campbell) as he travels across the UK seeking bizarre and imaginative film concepts from members of the public. He and his crew then transform these notions into reality within just three days, although the standard of the final product remains somewhat dubious.

The official description states: "Hotshot director Sam and his elite team of filmmakers race against the clock to turn ordinary people's extraordinary, chaotic and surreal ideas into hit movies." Alongside series creator Sam, who portrays an exaggerated version of himself, the ensemble features Michell and Webb Are Not Helping's Lara Ricote as runner Jess, and Am I Being Unreasonable's Helen Bauer in the role of sound engineer Pat. Additionally, Aaron Chen (Fisk) plays intimacy coordinator Sebastian, while This Country's David Hargreaves takes on the character of cinematographer Winnie, reports the Mirror. Following its release, reviews have varied enormously, with some hailing it as the finest thing on television while others have condemned it as the worst — a reception Sam had anticipated. He confessed during a conversation with Metro: "It's really hard making a show.

It's better to watch a show," before adding: "There's a big, serious threat of it being t**d of the year." Professional critics appeared largely favourable towards the series, with The Guardian declaring it "the funniest TV show of the entire year" in their glowing five-star review. The Times, however, was considerably less generous, awarding it three stars and branding it "just so weird." While it has yet to receive a Rotten Tomatoes rating, viewers who plunged straight in have been forthright in sharing their opinions. One disgruntled viewer wrote: "That make that movie programme with Sam Campbell is absolutely HORRIFICCCCCCCC." "A few episodes in on #MakeThatMovie (love Sam Campbell) and while it's genius to cast Aaron Chen in roles such as intimacy coordinator and stunt coordinator, he just feels very underused," remarked another. A third urged "everyone watch Make That Movie by Sam Campbell," while a fourth remained unconvinced, noting: "Hmm...

Sam Campbell is great at spontaneous weird ideas but I'm not sure it works so well committed to a script... And Sam won't be winning any Oscars for his acting." Make That Movie is available to stream via Channel 4's catch-up service.