2003’s Johnny English introduced us to the titular bumbling superspy played by Rowan Atkinson, and was a fair attempt at poking fun at the ultra-cool James Bond movies. Now, eight years later, Atkinson is back with Johnny English Reborn, which seems a bit of a long stretch for a sequel, though it’s nice to see they haven’t made any attempt to hide his age. The new movie still isn’t fantastic, but it should please fans of the genre just fine.
Though there are some clever and humorous details, the basic plot is pure formula. Five years have passed since English embarrassed himself and spy agency MI7 on a failed mission in Mozambique. Suspended indefinitely, he’s been in seclusion at the requisite Tibetan monastery. He’s brought back into the service by MI7 leader Pegasus (Gillian Anderson) when an ex-CIA agent demands to meet him to deliver information about a Chinese assassination plot. Partnered with a new rookie agent, this time named Tucker (Daniel Kaluuya), English proceeds with the investigation in two-steps forward, one-step back fashion.
The problem I have with most spy spoof characters, Johnny included, is that the creators can never decide whether they’re James Bond or Inspector Clouseau. One minute, English is casually sauntering after a fleeing suspect, using all manner of clever shortcuts to keep up, and the next he’s dismissing glaringly obvious evidence that one of his colleagues is a mole. More often than not, this back and forth forces the characters to fit the plot, which takes us out of the movie. Consistency either way would be a big improvement, even at the cost of some laughs.
Luckily, however, there are a fair number of laughs here, though most are of the light chuckle variety. There’s also a couple of good action sequences, as every spy story should have.
Atkinson plays both sides of Johnny’s nature equally well, and won’t disappoint his fans. Everyone else is secondary, but Kaluuya and Rosamund Pike (as psychologist Kate) do well. It’s nice to see Anderson, who has been relatively less exposed since her X-Files days, and although she begins with an annoying closed-mouthed British accent, she gets better later on.
It may be the sequel no one asked for, but Johnny English Reborn is amusing enough to justify a look.
(NOTE: If you’re not ready to flee the theatre when the credits arrive, stick around for one last bit of fun. If nothing else, it might turn your kids on to classical music.)
Tags: movie review
About the author: David Raitt
David Raitt is a writer and lover of pop culture. He lives in Oakville. He has also worked as an actor for The Second City, and has written, produced and performed his own sketch comedy, including the Canadian Comedy Award-nominated ALL THE RAGE. Semi-retired from performing, he still teaches improv and communications skills to students and corporate groups through his association with The Second City. Check out Dave's website at http://davidraitt.com
Follow
Subscribe