MOVIE REVIEW: Steve Coogan excellent as ever as Norfolk’s finest DJ turns into unlikely hero
Alan Partridge. (BBC Films) 89 minutes. Rated R. Now playing at the Laemmle Royal Theatre, 11523 Santa Monica Boulevard, West Los Angeles.
YOU DON’T get much Partridge in Southern California. And if you are fan of Steve Coogan in general and his semi-classic comic creation Alan Partridge in particular, that can be a very bad thing.
Which is why this week’s release of the feature length Alan Partridge movie is so welcome. For the uninitiated, Partridge is a downwardly-mobile provincial DJ in Norfolk with too many character flaws to list, but chief among them is that he is sexist, selfish, vain, delusional and untalented. Partridge was created by Coogan for two short TV series almost twenty years ago but his enduring popularity among British audiences prompted the English comic actor and Oscar-nominated screenwriter to resurrect him for this movie, which was titled Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa for its release in the UK last year.
The plot centers on Partridge once more being thrust into the national limelight he so craves during a siege at his radio station after his friend and fellow DJ Pat Farrell (the excellent Colm Meaney) goes postal having learned he is losing his job following a takeover at the station by a large media company and its youth-obssessed CEO Jason Tresswell (Nigel Lindsay).The movie switches deftly between comedy and action, with several hilarious set-pieces, most notably when Partridge slips into the boardroom in attempt to save Pat’s job, only to pivot in a moment when he discovers that if Pat is reprieved, then he, Partridge will be next on the chopping block. Another gorgeously British moment comes in the middle of the siege as Partridge and Farrell still find time for some inane conversation and to ask their listeners. “What is the worst monger? Fish, rumour, iron or war?”
Coogan is clearly in his element here and viewers with no previous knowledge of Partridge can enjoy it as much as veteran fans. The script – co-written by Armando Ianucchi of “Veep” fame, – is strong and funny throughout, with more than a few references to “Dog Day Afternoon”, and it is confidently directed by Declan Lowney. Definitely worth checking out.
– Nick Stark
