Ensemble sketches in 'The Boat That Rocked' fail to mesh
Director: Richard Curtis
Cast: Bill Nihy, Rhys Ifans, Nick Frost, Phillip Seymour Hoffman
Cert: 15
A nostalgic hark-back to the heady 1960s when the dull old BBC was blown away by the arrival of pirate radio, blasted to its excited young audience from rusty old tubs moored in the English Channel just beyond the grasp of the law.
The story of Radio Rock – and its mixed-bag collection of off-the-wall DJs – is told here by a director who has cornered the market in quirky Brit humour.
Alas, while the film is packed with great songs and a long list of Brit film and TV stars all clambering aboard for their cameo appearances, the overall feel of it remains firmly as a disjointed ensemble piece of sketches as each of the DJs is thrown a moment or two of prominence.
Nihy, as always, shines as Quentin, the boss of the station, but the film, while it doesn’t entirely disappoint, remains something of a piecemeal venture.
Star Rating: 3/5
