America, meet Alan Partridge. He’s a fictional character who shares some of the same DNA as Ron Burgundy, Will Ferrell’s buffoonish, boisterous and somewhat deluded 70s era TV news anchorman. Partridge is a British Burgundy, a radio jockey full of himself and never at a loss for schticky humor and silly catchphrases in Steve Coogan’s brilliant portrayal.
Coogan, last seen on the big screen in the US in a much different sort of film, “Philomena,” brings the character to life in a charming and utterly British tale that will be quite familiar on the other side of the pond – and quite enchanting over here.
In the UK, Partridge is a multimedia personage who’s been around for 20 years, with a presence brought to life by Coogan on stage, radio, television, the printed page (2011’s book “I Partridge: We Need to Talk About Alan Partridge”) and now finally, on celluloid. Yes, this is the first Partridge film. It was already released in Great Britain and opens in the US on April 4.
While Partridge may have longevity, he doesn’t necessarily have maturity, but one thing that has remained constant is his gift for being impressed by himself. Hence the tagline: “Someone is trying to kill Alan. You’ll wish it was you.”
As kind of an endearing idiot with media whorish values and no holds barred ambition (a familiar combo in the US) — he claims his first cry at birth earned a 100% audience share in the delivery room– Partridge is at his funniest when trying to get out of a jam. That usually results in a cringe-worthy situation that could involve nudity, loads of coarse language that accidentally gets on the air, or firearms.
The plot revolves around a radio station where Partridge works in the town of Norwich, England that has been purchased by new owners who have started cutting costs. With everyone’s jobs on the line, the situation becomes even tenser when a fired employee takes hostages at the station and insists on negotiating only through Partridge.
Realizing the media opportunity that has landed in his lap, Partridge sees it as career boost even while botching basic tasks the police ask him to do to save the others. In the midst of all the televised tumult, he somehow ends up with his naked bum splashed across national, and possibly worldwide media.
Watching the tale unfold, we definitely felt the comic fingerprints of Armando Iannucci—the creator of “Veep,” who has been part of the Partridge team almost since its inception and is a writer and executive producer. Declan Lowney directed the film, which is being released stateside by Magnolia Pictures.
So go. You’ll laugh, you’ll laugh again and then you’ll laugh some more, even if some of the Brit lingo flies by without full comprehension.
–Hillary Atkin
