Ahaaa..It’s an Alan Partridge movie. One question. Who the fuck is Alan Partridge?
He’s the mid-morning radio DJ that put Norwich on the map.
Why would anyone want to do that?
I don’t know. He’s also the broadcasting genius behind Youth Hostelling with Chris Eubank, Cooking in Prison and Monkey Tennis.
Really?
Sadly no. Simon Cowell and Gordon Ramsay nicked his ideas before he could ever get them off the ground. However the two series of I’m Alan Partridge rank alongside the Office, Peep Show and The Thick of It as the greatest comedies produced in the UK in the past 20 years. Alan stands proudly erect alongside Barbara Windsor’s tits, Benny Hills speeded up rape attempts and Mrs Slocombe’s pussy as the rock-solid institutions upon which our great nation was built.
Speaking of which
Serious film critics would flag up the films of Powell and Pressburger, David Lean, Alfred Hitchcock and Carol Reed as the representative landmarks of British cinema. Truth be told, 75% of all the films made in this country since 1960 were spin-offs from TV sitcoms. Orson Welles speechifying about the history of Switzerland is but a rare aberration. The entire cast of Are You Being Served going on holiday to Spain is the norm.
So, the French were right. British Cinema is an oxymoron.
Yep. As is French Comedy. Those cunts probably still believe the abominable Jaques Tati is a hoot. The brilliant OSS117 films are the exceptions that prove the rule. As Truffaut or Jean Luc-Godard probably once said, Entertainment? Pah! If you want entertainment, go watch a bunch of clowns.
…Alan Partridge then.
Oh yes. Back on track. This could have been shit or at best a massive let down, but sixty seconds in, a plan was hatched to solve the problems of Israel/Palestine by merging Judaism and Islam into a pig hating belief system called Jizz-Lam and I knew we were on solid ground. The plot involves a psychotic Colm Meaney taking the staff of North Norfolk Digital Radio hostage after his early morning folk music show is taken off air but it’s really not important. This is the kind of film where a man gets stuck directly underneath the pan of an RV toilet leading to Colm Meaney taking a revenge shit on his face. I don’t think Oscar will be calling for this one.
Verdict
A bit over 90 minutes long and I was laughing throughout. Like the best comedy itÂs quotable as fuck and there’s enough going on in the background to make it completely rewatchable. Couldn’t have asked for more. If you found I’m Alan Partridge, Peep Show or the Office funny, watch this. It’s brilliant. If Everybody Loves Raymond is more your bag, I noticed Grown Ups 2 is still playing.