Sim1Rock'n Roll
August 12th 2009 10:08
Today, dear readers, I bring you a fail-safe recipe for getting a positive film review out of me.
Here goes: take the simplest of plots, so I can understand it (no intricacies, no time travel and no nonsense in outer space). Add a cast of the finest British actors (perhaps Bill Nighy, Rhys Ifans or Kenneth Brannagh). Throw in the mix a kick-arse soundtrack, et voilà, Fish on Film Headquarters is VERY happy indeed.
Setting the film on a boat is optional, of course, but undoubtedly adds to the charm.
And so here we have it, The Boat That Rocked. Latest offering from the Kiwi genius that is Richard Curtis and whose writing skills have given us Notting Hill; Love Actually and Four Weddings and a Funeral, amongst other gems.
And here, he directs a superb cast of British actors plus Phillip Seymour Hoffman as a pirate radio crew, on a boat in the North Sea, broadcasting rock’n roll music 24/7 to the nation. As the whole thing is set in the Sixties, it’s not only the boat that rocks, but the soundtrack, too. If you like 60s rock, of course. Which I do. The Hollies, The Turtles, The Box Tops. Chris Andrews, Jimi Hendrix, Otis Redding. The Beach Boys, David Bowie and The Who- the hits are coming thick and fast and it’s just one brilliant rock’n roll fest. In between the scenes on the boat, we get flashes of the people listening to Radio Rock- young women in short dresses, truck drivers on the road and kids hiding the radio receiver under their pillows at night. It reminded me of myself, when I used to secretly play Queen’s Greatest Hits 2 over and over again under my pillow. Later on, it was the late sessions on BBC Radio 1 hosted by John Peel...aah, brings back memories...
BUt back to the film. The characters are hilarious, slightly weird but ultimately loveable. We have Thick Kevin (Tom Brooke), for instance. A bloke who really is a clown short of a circus most of the time, but every now and then is prone to flashes of genius. Or Doctor Dave (Nick Frost), a chubby dude who shags everything that moves. And then there’s Gavin Cavanagh (Rhys Ifans), smooth operator and a self-pronounced legend of radio. And Carl (Tom Sturridge) , who is a young lad of 18 and god son of Quentin (Bill Nighy), the head honcho. Carl is sent to the boat by his crazy 60s chick mother, and it later turns out that he is in fact the son of Bob, the head-in-the-clouds dude who’s big into his records and who does the early morning slot on the radio and whom no-one ever sees on the boat. (For 7 months no-one even realises Bob is actually part of the radio and lives on the boat with them.)
And along comes the prime minister and one of his politicians and decides pirate radio must be abolished. Unfortunately for them, there is nothing illegal about broadcasting radio from a boat that rocks and so Sir Alistair Dormandy sets about inventing a law that would make pirate radio illegal. After all, that is what the government is for- inventing laws against anything they don’t like. Kenneth Brannagh is perfect in the role of the crazed politician. He is obsessed with Radio Rock (‘that filth’) but far be it from him to do anything about it and so he gets one of his minions on the case. Meanwhile, on the boat, The Count (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) is busy trying to introduce the F-word to radio.
There are no women on the boat, apart from one, but ‘she’s a lesbian’ so that makes it alright and anyway, the boys gotta eat and the lesbian cooks. But every Saturday, each of the radio broadcasting boys are allowed to invite one woman onto the boat. Although ‘one’ can mean five. And just because you came aboard with one guy, doesn’t mean you can’t sleep with another. In fact, you can kiss one boy and while he goes to borrow a condom from somewhere, you can jump into bed with another dude. Or, you can marry one of the guys so you get permission to live on the boat and that way, you are close to the guy on the boat you are actually in love with. Simple. I promise you, dear readers, the plot of this delightful movie doesn’t get any more complicated than that. It’s the cinema version of easy listening. It’s the Engelbert Humperdinck of film. And it was right up my street.
So after all attempts to stop Radio Rock fail or get ignored by the boat, the politicians stoop to the lowest of lows and sabotage the boat so it sinks. I was heartbroken when record after record got washed overboard and when Bob, trying to save his favourites almost drowns. He is rescued by his newfound son Carl, who persuades him to let go of the vinyl.
Of course, this is a feelgood movie and needs a happy ending. The guys get rescued by hordes of fans on their boats who had heard the distress call on the radio. And whilst Radio Rock ended then and there, the film producers were happy to announce at the end of the movie, that today there are over 200 radio stations in Britain and rock’n roll is alive and well.
Now in case you haven’t got the message yet- I loved this film and it’s going to enter my eclectic DVD collection. As for you, dear readers, if you haven’t seen it yet, go watch it. And if you have already seen it, go watch it again..
Here goes: take the simplest of plots, so I can understand it (no intricacies, no time travel and no nonsense in outer space). Add a cast of the finest British actors (perhaps Bill Nighy, Rhys Ifans or Kenneth Brannagh). Throw in the mix a kick-arse soundtrack, et voilà, Fish on Film Headquarters is VERY happy indeed.
Setting the film on a boat is optional, of course, but undoubtedly adds to the charm.
And so here we have it, The Boat That Rocked. Latest offering from the Kiwi genius that is Richard Curtis and whose writing skills have given us Notting Hill; Love Actually and Four Weddings and a Funeral, amongst other gems.
BUt back to the film. The characters are hilarious, slightly weird but ultimately loveable. We have Thick Kevin (Tom Brooke), for instance. A bloke who really is a clown short of a circus most of the time, but every now and then is prone to flashes of genius. Or Doctor Dave (Nick Frost), a chubby dude who shags everything that moves. And then there’s Gavin Cavanagh (Rhys Ifans), smooth operator and a self-pronounced legend of radio. And Carl (Tom Sturridge) , who is a young lad of 18 and god son of Quentin (Bill Nighy), the head honcho. Carl is sent to the boat by his crazy 60s chick mother, and it later turns out that he is in fact the son of Bob, the head-in-the-clouds dude who’s big into his records and who does the early morning slot on the radio and whom no-one ever sees on the boat. (For 7 months no-one even realises Bob is actually part of the radio and lives on the boat with them.)
There are no women on the boat, apart from one, but ‘she’s a lesbian’ so that makes it alright and anyway, the boys gotta eat and the lesbian cooks. But every Saturday, each of the radio broadcasting boys are allowed to invite one woman onto the boat. Although ‘one’ can mean five. And just because you came aboard with one guy, doesn’t mean you can’t sleep with another. In fact, you can kiss one boy and while he goes to borrow a condom from somewhere, you can jump into bed with another dude. Or, you can marry one of the guys so you get permission to live on the boat and that way, you are close to the guy on the boat you are actually in love with. Simple. I promise you, dear readers, the plot of this delightful movie doesn’t get any more complicated than that. It’s the cinema version of easy listening. It’s the Engelbert Humperdinck of film. And it was right up my street.
So after all attempts to stop Radio Rock fail or get ignored by the boat, the politicians stoop to the lowest of lows and sabotage the boat so it sinks. I was heartbroken when record after record got washed overboard and when Bob, trying to save his favourites almost drowns. He is rescued by his newfound son Carl, who persuades him to let go of the vinyl.
Of course, this is a feelgood movie and needs a happy ending. The guys get rescued by hordes of fans on their boats who had heard the distress call on the radio. And whilst Radio Rock ended then and there, the film producers were happy to announce at the end of the movie, that today there are over 200 radio stations in Britain and rock’n roll is alive and well.
Now in case you haven’t got the message yet- I loved this film and it’s going to enter my eclectic DVD collection. As for you, dear readers, if you haven’t seen it yet, go watch it. And if you have already seen it, go watch it again..
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