Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa - Danny's review

He started on the radio with On the Hour and Knowing Me, Knowing You, then transferred to TV with The Day Today and more KMKY. Then came two series of I'm Alan Partridge, the mini-series Mid-Morning Matters and his autobiography, I, Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan. I've grown up with this, and am slightly converned that, 22 years on, Alan Partridge is still my favourite character.

I expected the big screen debut to be a new and significant chapter of Alan's life, maybe not involving the radio at all. But the film continues on pretty directly from Mid-Morning Matters, with Alan a DJ at Radio Norwich (changed back from North Norfolk Digital). The plot is set in motion when it's discovered that the station is being totally rebranded. Initially Alan doesn't care, until he sees that they're going to sack either him or other veteran D-Jock Pat Farrell, played by Colm Meaney. When it's Farrell who's dismissed he returns with a shotgun and takes them all hostage. Alan uses this as an opportunity to boost his public image, but he's also quite sympathetic to Farrell's old school radio, and broadcasts a cheesy live show with him throughout the siege, and on the Radio Norwich tour bus.

When Alan was broadcasting I somehow expected his chat to be different, because this was in the cinema now, and not just a web segment sponsored by Fosters. But in retrospect that is the beauty of the film, that it's a slice of Alan's mundane life. It's never boring watching him, and such is the character that anything can be entertaining.

I enjoyed that Alan Partridge continues to mellow out the character, and Steve Coogan, get older. The support performances are all fine too, understated as you'd expect in this sort of close-to-life drama. I especially liked Sidekick Simon, but could have done without Michael the ever-present Geordie. The action scenes are always brief and exciting, as they should be in a comedy.

It's subtly directed. When Farrell leaves the gun lying around no sooner do you think could Alan steal that?, then it cuts to Alan thinking that too. But Farrell always looks so big and mean, you don't fancy Alan's chances. Although it's potentially a dangerous situation, the film takes a light tone and doesn't try to make an emotional drama. It's a low key affair - in fact by the end all Alan's achieved is a slightly better slot for his Radio Show. But maybe, if this film is successful enough, there'll be a sequel building on Alan's new found fame and burgeoning love interest.

I would have preferred it if the film was some sort of pseudo-documentary, to preserve the illusion that Alan Partridge is a real person. As it is there's a logical disconnect of Alan promoting his movie, which clearly shows him as a fictional character. Though I suppose this has already happened with the I'm Alan Partridge series.

Overall, it's a funny film, that keeps up the high standard of the Partridge brand. My favourite part is the final stand off between Farrell and Alan, on Cromer Pier. Farrell is having a breakdown, talking about ending it all, to be with his dead wife again. "It's the circle of life" he blubs sadly, with a shotgun in his mouth. "Cirque de Soleil" replies Alan, irrelevantly.

The World's End - Danny says

This is a buddy comedy which turns into a Sci-fi zombie invasion.

I preferred the buddy bits more than the zombies. When the gang are together there's a great chemistry. Simon Pegg is frenetic and hyperactive, and the rest are happy to play second fiddle to him. He's got a big responsibility, in being the extrovert and in driving the plot forward. It's quite believable that without him the rest of them would happily have a cup of tea or just go home. I enjoyed Nick Frost's very reluctant accomplice the most.

When they go back to Newton Haven the pubs are all chain bars. I couldn't tell if the joke is that the town is actually the same, or if the joke is that it's become completely homogenized. It's a good reflection on forty year old men reliving their youth, and it's actually a bit of an interruption once the zombies arrive. When they do, there's some good set pieces mixing mundane and bizarre and Pierce Brosnan. For my money there's too much actual fighting though, which becomes a bit tiresome once you get over the zombies' funny robot bodies.

The biggest strength is the freedom - you feel like the film-makers can do whatever they want and that makes it unpredictable. There's some nice touches, such as the small number of residents who actually quite like the aliens and want to live among them. There's a casual attitude to peril - when Rosamund Pike asks what's become of her zombified brother she's just told "Er, I'll tell you later, just drive!". The epilogue is good too, when all of the aliens, including Martin Freeman with half a head, are awkwardly integrated back into society.

Despite lots of highlights I wasn't totally convinced. Overall I would rate the film as quite fun. I enjoyed it equally as much as Sean of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, which is probably the best guide for how much you'll enjoy it.