Rent Johnny English (2003)

A really funny & light comedy pastiche of espionage/007, with an excellent Atkinson - Johnny English review by Timmy B

Up until the early 2000's, the main character that probably came to people's minds when you mentioned satirical espionage films was Austin Powers, Goldmember being released the year before this film to record-breaking box office numbers. So it was only a matter of time before a British film mocking one of our most famous exports would be made. Thankfully, Rowan Atkinson was the man to bring this to the screen, reviving his character Richard Latham, who had been created for a series of Barclaycard adverts, now rebranded as Johnny English.

Johnny English is a bumbling & useless MI7 agent who is pretty much a glorified messenger within the organisation. Displaying a confidence which always comes before an almighty fall, combined with a collection of anecdotes displaying heroism which would fall apart at the slightest probing, he is elevated by accident to lead investigator when every other MI7 agent is killed (ironically due to his incompetence overseeing security at a gathering they are attending.) The Crown Jewels have been stolen & English is tasked with getting them back, accompanied by sidekick Bough as well as the enigmatic Lorna.

I really like this film, mainly due to Atkinson's flawless comedy skills as well as the extremely tight & brilliant direction by Peter Howitt, who I feel doesn't get anywhere near enough credit. To create a good & funny pastiche film which doesn't descend into desperate laugh-hunting is much trickier than people think. For every great film like this, there are many terrible ones. Johnny English manages to deftly balance the need for a character who is clumsy but who also does have a small amount of common sense. The idea of the character being someone so stupid that he couldn't hold a gun the right way round or know how to drive a car would have been a teeth-grindingly painful & moronic experience, which the filmmakers wisely avoid.

There are many surprising moments in this film, one of which is the great stunts which you wouldn't expect in this type of movie. The centerpiece car chase is inventive, despite it being a shame that they probably didn't have the budget to utilise all of the gadgets which were packed into the Aston Martin in a full-blown action scene around London. It also has a cracking theme song from Robbie Williams, alongside a good soundtrack clearly taking its cues from other spy films.

Performance-wise, Atkinson is as mentioned excellent, but there is also plenty of room for others to make impact. Ben Miller nicely underplays Bough, half in awe of his boss & half embarrassed that he makes so many glaring errors. Natalie Imbruglia brings a vibrant sexuality as well as a confidence to Lorna, also making her character's arc at the end believable. John Malkovich is to me the only fly in the ointment. Unfortunately, whilst this is an unapologetically over-the-top film, Pascal Sauvage is often too hammy in the realisation of the character. For every funny moment, there are at least 2 where it either isn't funny or any humour just gets suffocated by overacting.

But when this film is funny, it really is. For me, the crowning moment involves the Archbishop of Canterbury being absolutely humiliated in front of billions of people on TV, followed by English's absolute mortification & desperation to row back from what would be to most people a reason to vanish and never be heard from again. The laughs per minute are high & the comedy light, never straying from the clear desire from everyone on the film to make something funny but not serious.

Whilst I never bothered with the sequels, this is a solid & extremely funny film for people of all ages to enjoy. Highly recommended