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July 18, 2003
July 18, 2003
Universal Studios
PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
Rowan Atkinson, Simon Bernstein, Tim Berrington, Rowland Davies, Oliver Ford Davies, Philippa Fordham, Terence Harvey, Natalie Imbruglia, Martin Lawton, John Malkovich, Douglas McFerran, Kevin McNally, Ben Miller (II), Steve Nicolson, Neville Phillips, Tim Pigott-Smith, Tasha de Vasconcelos, Greg Wise, Nina Young
Mr. Bean meets Mr. Bond in Johnny English, a spy spoof that skewers the genre with Rowan Atkinson's trademark brand of veddy-British slapstick. It's a bit half-baked as a wannabe franchise, but Atkinson's creation of a new screen persona is just promising enough to warrant a sequel, despite critics' complaints that Austin Powers had already exhausted the spy-spoof's potential. Poppycock! Atkinson's gift for physical and, in this case, even verbal humor will surely please his devoted fans, even when a rather tepidly comedic screenplay prevents the British funnyman from reaching new heights of absurdity. As bumbling superspy Johnny English, who gains top-level MI-7 clearance after inadvertently causing a colleague's demise, Atkinson breathes life into gags that are too familiar to earn such an amusing revival. With John Malkovich as a smarmy Frenchman determined to overthrow the British monarchy, and Natalie Imbruglia as Johnny's comely comrade-in-arms, this slight but enjoyable comedy gives Atkinson plenty of opportunity to mug it up as only he can. --Jeff Shannon - Amazon.com
