Cast: Rowan Atkinson, Gillian Anderson, Rosamund Pike, Dominic West, Daniel Kaluuya, Richard Schiff
Plot: Johnny English (Atkinson) is called back from exile by MI7 when a plot emerges to kill the Chinese premier.
The original 'Johnny English' was not a great film. It was a stupid, slapstick comedy with John Malkovich doing an outrageous French accent, but I was 11 years old and I loved it. And when I say love I mean LOVED it. Being a huge James Bond fan from a young age I found a comedy version of Bond to be completely hilarious -perhaps more so than I should. So 8 years on a sequel to 'Johnny English'? Sure why not.
I'm going to keep this short but because there isn't a lot that can be said about 'Johnny English Reborn'. Since I have such fond memories of the first one I was quietly looking forward to this unnecessary sequel, despite the fact that I know if the gags were in another comedy I would call it terrible. The humour isn't particularly clever, but it works thanks to its title character the unflappable Agent English. Atkinson is of course brilliant in the role displaying his trademark talents for physical humour and pronouncing words in a funny way (mole and vole are somehow made hilarious). There are many ridiculous comic set pieces and plenty of the typical slapstick, which does work for the most part.
The plot is there to take English from set piece to set piece, so it is essentially irrelevant because you ultimately don't care if the Chinese premier is assassinated. Normally I would say this would kill a movie dead, but I didn't go to 'Johnny English Reborn' for a captivating story I just wanted to see Rowan Atkinson pull silly faces. The third act is all but laughless as the writers just have to wrap up the plot leaving little room for any good jokes, but everything before this is wholly enjoyable. There is a fantastic running gag with the 'Mozambique Incident' that got English exiled and a mysterious old Asian woman steals laughs every time she is on screen.
Atkinson has more than capable support from the lovely pairing of Rosamund Pike and Gillian Anderson who star as English's love interest and boss respectively. Both do a great job with what they have, but that isn't much as I can't recall either of them having any sort of gag. Same can be said of English's rival Dominic West who aside from a particularly funny sequence in a men's toilet (nothing too weird) he has little to do that is actually funny. The gags are left to Atkinson and his rookie sidekick Tucker, played by Daniel Kaluuya, who does try his hardest, but his jokes rarely landed.
'Johnny English Reborn' isn't going to be getting Best Picture nods at next years Oscars, but what it is is a serviceable family friendly comedy that does exactly what I expected of it. Perhaps my view has been slightly skewered by my childish love of the original, but what can I say I enjoyed it. There are some great comic set pieces littered throughout that just had me laughing, that woke a part of my sense of humour that had been untouched for years. I haven't felt like this after a movie since 'Toy Story 3', the difference in quality is obviously huge, but I love them both in different ways.
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