Alan Partridge is a character from the mind of British
comedian Steve Coogan, who has brought Partridge to life through multiple
venues, most notably British television.
The film Alan Partridge
(subtitled Alpha Papa outside the
U.S.) is an attempt to translate the character to the big screen and
potentially find an American audience. I
can’t say with any certainty how well the film fares with either of those
goals, for I don’t know how faithful it is to the source material, nor have I
heard much from American audiences about its reception. However, I do know a funny comedy when I see
one, and despite some character establishment issues, Alan Partridge is a film worth seeing for its clever writing.
Partridge is a DJ at a radio station that has recently been
bought out by new corporate management.
Fellow DJ Pat (played by Colm Meaney, whom you may remember as Chief
O’Brien from Star Trek: The Next
Generation and Deep Space Nine)
has been fired due to his show’s relatively low ratings, which drives poor Pat
a bit mad. Pat takes the radio station
under siege with a shotgun, Partridge takes the role of hostage negotiator,
shenanigans ensue. There’s obviously a
message here about the heartlessness of corporate takeovers, but thankfully the
film does not belabor the same point we’ve seen made in countless other
films. The focus is on the witty
dialogue and well-conceived physical comedy, and while I would never say it’s
gut-bustingly hilarious, I was consistently entertained by whatever was coming
out of Partridge’s mouth.
Your mileage is going to vary depending on your sense of
humor. Steve Coogan’s comedy seems to
revolve around a few key factors.
Partridge has a huge ego, and while we as the audience see him as a bumbling
idiot who is clearly overcompensating for his lack of intelligence, this is
further complimented by the fact that everyone else is dumber than he is. Nobody really stoops to the level of being
unrealistically stupid, but everyone seems to be a few IQ points lower than real-world human beings. This
justifies Partridge’s ego, which allows him to keep being ridiculous with few
consequences, so the jokes just keep coming as rapid-fire. And the jokes are mostly wordplay, so as long
as you pay close attention and have a quick wit, Partridge’s humor shouldn’t be
lost on you.
The one thing I will say against this film, though, it that
it seems to assume that we already know something about a few of the film’s
side characters. No one except Partridge
and Pat get much of an introduction, yet there seem to be some ancillary
character arcs for characters who don’t much affect the story at all, namely
Partridge’s… assistant/housekeeper?
She’s barely introduced, and the time spent on her feels wasted without
proper context. Some other side
characters, like a crazy old man and a love interest, are just thrust upon us
without any introduction, and I only wish that I knew more of the Alan Partridge lore so that I didn’t
feel so out of the loop.
When all’s said and done though, Alan Partridge does its job as a comedy. It’s smart, funny, and knows exactly how not
to overstay its welcome with a ninety minute runtime. If you’re a fan of the character or are just
looking for a good comedy, I’d say you can’t go wrong with this one.
Fan of British comedy?
Share your thoughts on your favorite British comedy moments in the
comments below.
No comments:
Post a Comment