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The Boat That Rocked. |
The Boat that Rocked, Exeter Vue
Cert 15, 132
By Graham Taylor
Richard Curtis is widely regarded as the best romantic comedy director of the last decade, with such classics as Notting Hill and Four Weddings and a Funeral. His latest ensemble flick, The Boat that Rocked is not in the same league as Curtis’ other comedies, but it’s certainly worth a watch.
The film is based on the period in the 1960s when people yearned to hear more pop and rock on the radio, but the Government only allowed this brash new music to be played for just two hours a week.
As people became bored of listening constantly to jazz and opera, they tuned into pirate radio stations, broadcasting from the North Sea.
The government were determined to wipe out this new music for ‘hooligans’, despite the fact that there was no law stopping these broadcasters from playing the music.
The film tells the story of the DJs, who broadcasted on Radio Rock - a popular pirate radio station that attracted millions. The captain and head of the station, Quentin (Bill Nighy) welcomes his godson, Carl (Tom Sturridge) aboard the ship, so he can learn the meaning of life, which in the DJs terms means living a rock star’s life; women, drugs, booze et al. Unfortunately, Carl doesn’t seem to know how to live this life, so the other members of the crew have to teach him.
The crew DJs include The Count (Phillip Seymour Hoffman), a loud American who lives for the station, Dave (Nick Frost), a blunt broadcaster, Gavin (Rhys Ifans), who, having left to work on radio in America, has recently rejoined Radio Rock, Simon (a superb Chris O’Dowd), a mid morning chart show host, and Angus (Rhys Darby) a humorous but annoying co- host. The DJs live to bring the people of Britain the pleasure of listening to new music, and letting people express themselves through the art of radio.
The men on board the ship, however, can’t be left on their own for too long, and each Saturday, a bevy of beautiful, promiscuous women arrive on board the boat, looking for love. Of course, the majority of the DJs are very willing to get the attention from the ladies, but shy Carl needs to be given a push. Quentin tries to help his godson by inviting his gorgeous niece, Marie-Anne (Tallulah Riley) on board for a while. As Carl is dumbstruck by her beauty, she has a little secret she won’t reveal.
Throughout the film, the crew members try to show Carl what it means to be on board the ship, and the meaning of Music to the nation. However, Carl isn’t just on the boat to have a good time - he has discovered his father is aboard the boat, he just has to find him.
There’s also the subplot involving Kenneth Branagh’s hideously pompous polictian, Minister Dormandy, trying to bring down Radio Rock, with the help of cocky civil servant, Twatt (Jack Davenport.)
The most noticeable thing about the film is the way the ensemble cast work together. Although only Nighy and Ifans are regulars in Curtis’ films, the rest of the cast look as if they’ve worked together for years; they’re all comfortable working alongside one another, and although the personalities differ immensely, all of the cast bounce off each other with ease.
Chris O’ Dowd stands out from the rest of the cast as Simon, a lovelorn young fellow, who desperately seeks his true love. But when he finds it, there’s a humiliating and pitiful secret his new wife (January Jones) is hiding.
O’ Dowd has already shown his comic chops in the award winning comedy, The IT Crowd, and his likeable personality shines throughout.
The young cast leave less of an impact than some of the older stars such as Nighy and Hoffman, but there’s still room for improvement over the years; they are by no means talentless.
However, it’s the great 60s music that steals the show. Uplifting rock music plays throughout the movie, from such iconic bands and artists such as The Hollies and The Who.
Curtis is known for his love of music, and his choices of music were very inspired. The use of the different songs is well done, particularly during the end scenes of the film, where there’s a nice plot twist, which you can see coming, but it’s still fun to watch.
The writing is stellar and witty, although it’s not as sharp as other Curtis related comedies. The one sell point of this film is this is not a romantic comedy; yes it does have a lot of passion in it, but it’s specifically meant as a homage to 60s music.
The film is very predictable, but then every film by Curtis is, and that doesn’t make it less enjoyable. Some of the jokes do occasionally fall flat, but it’s not too bad. If you want a light hearted, fun flick, The Boat that Rocked is the perfect choice of movie. breezy and bright.
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