The critics were unkind to this and I got the impression it was down to two reasons:
1 ) The character Johnny English is based on a character that appeared on credit card adverts in the early 1990s . you get the gut instinct that character development isn't something that applies to characters appearing in adverts
2 ) Bond spoofs are old hat and weren't all that funny in the first place
So I was sat there at Christmas thinking I'd be watching something with all the appeal of 37 day old turkey sandwiches but I was fairly impressed . Okay I wasn't rolling around the floor with tears streaming down my face but I've always liked Rowan Atkinson's arrogant portrayal of Edmund Blackadder and the character of Johhny English is just as similar to Blackadder as it is to Mr Bean . I will grant you the jokes are hit and miss or predictable like the scene where English infiltrates the villains HQ and finds an old man :
" What did they do to you ? "
" They took some of my blood "
" The b@stards "
Of course you can see the pay off long before it appears but that still doesn't stop it from being amusing when it does
No doubt a lot of pretentious John Malkovich fans were left stratching their heads wondering why he was slumming it in JOHNNY English but if you've enjoyed anything Rowan Atkinson has been in you'll certainly find this comedy very watchable
1 ) The character Johnny English is based on a character that appeared on credit card adverts in the early 1990s . you get the gut instinct that character development isn't something that applies to characters appearing in adverts
2 ) Bond spoofs are old hat and weren't all that funny in the first place
So I was sat there at Christmas thinking I'd be watching something with all the appeal of 37 day old turkey sandwiches but I was fairly impressed . Okay I wasn't rolling around the floor with tears streaming down my face but I've always liked Rowan Atkinson's arrogant portrayal of Edmund Blackadder and the character of Johhny English is just as similar to Blackadder as it is to Mr Bean . I will grant you the jokes are hit and miss or predictable like the scene where English infiltrates the villains HQ and finds an old man :
" What did they do to you ? "
" They took some of my blood "
" The b@stards "
Of course you can see the pay off long before it appears but that still doesn't stop it from being amusing when it does
No doubt a lot of pretentious John Malkovich fans were left stratching their heads wondering why he was slumming it in JOHNNY English but if you've enjoyed anything Rowan Atkinson has been in you'll certainly find this comedy very watchable