10. Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa (2013), dir. Declan Lowney

[strange_complex]

A few days ago, nigelmouse asked on Facebook whether anyone else fancied going along to see this film, and I did. So last night off we went.

I'm not going to write a long review of it, because trying to explain exactly why a good character-based comedy is funny is unlikely to do it or me any favours. Basically, if Alan Partridge's previous outings have made you laugh (even while cringing), this one will too.

There is a standard-format trailer available, but to be honest having just watched it now after seeing the film, it isn't very good. Maybe the whole point of Alan Partridge is that his individual lines are only funny in the context of the character, so the very short clips of dialogue which you typically get in a trailer don't work - you need a continuous scene to enjoy the full range of his ineptitude, insensitivity, narcissism and self-delusion. On that basis, this clip which the lovely firefish shared on Facebook this morning will do much better:

There's part of me which still longs slightly for a return to the spoof TV chat-show format used in Knowing Me, Knowing You... with Alan Partridge. Part of the joke there was that Alan's interviews were far more about himself than his guests, but because we didn't actually see his day to day life, the character didn't need to be consistent in the way he did once we moved to seeing both his radio show and his personal life around it in I'm Alan Partridge. But that format worked better for me in this film, perhaps because the longer narrative allowed more room for the character to breathe than the half-hour TV episodes.

Anyway, definitely worth seeing, and I imagine especially so if you are in, from or love Norfolk.

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Comments

[firefish.livejournal.com]

I wasn't that optimistic having seen the trailer, but I agree, you need the awkward build up in order to appreciate the comedy. The film wasn't amazing but it was very enjoyable, and I think they did a very good job of transferring it to film format. What helped was they kept it concise and snappy, not too long a film, not too long an intro (unlike The World's End, which I saw recently, it took too long setting up a premise and trying to be deeper than it deserved to be). It makes me want to visit Norwich!

[strange-complex.livejournal.com]

"It makes me want to visit Norwich!"

Hehe, yes, me too! I liked all the scenes with the people of Norwich cheering on the streets for Pat and Alan and their beloved old-fashioned radio station, even when Pat had gone crazy and taken everyone hostage.

Apparently the series and now the film have been very good for Norwich tourism, even though they don't exactly make it look cool or glamorous. I guess it taps into that ironic British thing of embracing the naff and making it a matter of pride.