JOHNNY ENGLISH STRIKES AGAIN Report Card

REPORT CARD

JOHNNY ENGLISH STRIKES AGAIN:  Universal Pictures

SUMMARY: Grade = B+	This movie is delightfully funny.  It is an old-fashioned style comedy; the kind that endures.  The virtual reality scene, and the scene with the little green pill had me rolling on the floor.  The finale is a bit weaker than the previous two films in the series, but overall this is a decidedly fine comedy.
STARS	Rowan Atkinson; Olga Kurylenko; Emma Thompson; Ben Miller
TECH FOLKS:	Directed by David Kerr Written by William Davies Music by Howard Goodall Cinematography by Florian Hoffmeister Edited by Tony Cranstoun and Mark Everson.
PLOT:	Johnny English has retired from service in MI7, and is teaching at a private country prep school.  A hacker cracks MI7’s data banks and outs all of its agents.  The hacker then turns to all of England’s computer based services.  To find and stop the villain, English is brought out of retirement, because he was never on the digital list. The Johnny English films do considerably better in the UK than here.  It’s a shame, really, because they are quite funny.  This one is very much in the style of the old Blake Edwards Pink Panther films.
ACTING   Grade = A	It’s a comedy, so everyone, especially Emma, is playing it over the top.  Atkinson continues to be one of the funniest people on screen.  His facial expressions alone are priceless.
SCRIPT   Grade = B	It’s very clever, the manner in which English is brought out of retirement and back into service for MI7.  The general theme of the new digital age vs. the old fashioned manners runs throughout, without being so pompous as to declare a winner.  The villain is reminiscent of Elliott Carver in TOMORROW NEVER DIES.  There is a nod to Peter Sellers in THE PINK PANTHER STRIKES AGAIN, as the movies not only share a similar title, but a similar ending as well.
TECHNICAL: Grade = B	Most of the comedy relies on Atkinson, however the cinematography on the VR scene is exceptional and the SFX guys have a bit of fun with the nuclear sub missile firing.
RECOMMENDATIONS:	I recommend this film highly.  It’s excellent for an evening of laughs; especially if you are tired and bored with bathroom humor movies, and films trying to be funny around political themes which will be meaningless in six months.  This is good old fashioned comedy.  It will be as funny ten years hence, as it is now.