The following is a movie review “Johnny English Strikes Again” by Marc Primo.
Release date: 26 October 2018 (United States)
Director: David Kerr
Language: English
Production companies: StudioCanal UK, Working Title Films, Perfect World Pictures
Producers: Chris Clark, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Rowan Atkinson, Rafaël Benoliel
To say, “If you’ve seen one Johnny English film, you’ve seen them all” is a statement that people seem to be divided on. While there is some truth to it, I find myself somewhere left of center, wherein this third installment in the franchise does bring some fresh gags to the silver screen.
While not compulsive viewing material, it is worthwhile if you happen to appreciate the signature slapstick, oftentimes cringe-inducing humor, of the immortal Mr. Bean that Atkinson virtually single-handedly breathed life into for nearly four decades now.
In this latest feature outing, the James Bond parody continues with secret agent Johnny English forced out of retirement to track down and apprehend a hacker who has managed to infiltrate the system and compromise top secret information, revealing the identity of all active secret agents in Britain. Failure is not an option for English, whose non-existent intellectual and technical prowess set the scene for just about enough giggles throughout the film’s 89-minute running time.
Several of the set pieces give a feeling of deja-vu, and this is possibly the main flaw where Johnny English strikes out, so to speak. Whether the producers made this movie for a new generation is debatable, seeing that the last installment was released only seven years ago.
That said, more discerning viewers will feel they are paying to see the same tired gags all over again. But if you take it at face value for what it is, it does make for satisfying viewing, serving as proof that Atkinson hasn’t lost his comedic touch at delivering his signature brand of humor that made him a star in his native Britain, and across the Atlantic too.
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