The Boat That Rocked (2009)

User Rating:

7.6/10   

Director:

Richard Curtis

Writer:

Richard Curtis (writer)

Release Date:

13 November 2009 (USA)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Music | Romance

Tagline:

1 Boat. 8 DJs. No Morals.

Plot:

A period comedy about an illegal radio station in the North Sea in the 1960's.

Plot Keywords:

North Sea | Pop Music | 1960s | American | Pirate Radio

Cast

Michael Hadley	...	Mr. Roberts
Charlie Rowe	...	James
Lucy Fleming	...	Mrs. Roberts
Philip Seymour Hoffman	...	The Count
Tom Sturridge	...	Carl
Ian Mercer	...	Transfer Boatman
Bill Nighy	...	Quentin
Will Adamsdale	...	News John
Tom Brooke	...	Thick Kevin
Rhys Darby	...	Angus
Nick Frost	...	Dave
Katherine Parkinson	...	Felicity
Chris O'Dowd	...	Simon
Ike Hamilton	...	Harold
Stephen Moore	...	Prime Minister

Also Known As:

Good Morning England (France)
Pirate Radio (USA) (new title)
Radio Rock Revolution (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated R for language, and some sexual content including brief nudity.

Runtime:

135 min

Country:

UK | Germany | USA | France

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS | DTS

Certification:

USA:R | Ireland:15A | Finland:K-11 | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Germany:12 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:7 | Sweden:7 | Singapore:NC-16 (cut) | France:U | UK:15 | South Korea:18 | Portugal:M/12 | New Zealand:M | Australia:M | Japan:PG12 | USA:R (certificate #45019) | Argentina:13

Filming Locations:

Gambardella's Cafe, Blackheath Standard, London, England, UK

Company:

Universal Pictures

Trivia:

Dormandy's secretary was originally known as Miss Clit in early versions but is now only known as Miss C, presumably due to much being made of having two character names doubling as innuendo.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the Christmas scene at the government minister's house, the minister's daughter offers Twatt a mince pie. A mince pie can be clearly seen already on his plate and when he accepts the (apparently second) the other has vanished.

Quotes:

Dave: Sure throwing him in is the best way to get him to learn how to swim?
The Count: Absolutely.
Dave: Ok.
The Count: On second thought, it might just be for kids.
Angus: I can't touch the bottom!
The Count: Yeah, that's right. Throw a baby in, it floats. Instinctively, naturally. It's a beautiful thing. I think if you throw in an adult, doesn't work that way.
Angus: Goodbye!

Movie Connections:

Featured in 81st Annual Academy Awards (2009) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Judy in Disguise (With Glasses)

A good-humoured and moving British comedy as a tribute to pop-rock

If you think of "Four weddings and a Funeral" or "Notting Hill", you will be a little disappointed, being here the overall tone not so brilliant, dialogues not so sparkling, however, the both humorous and moving atmosphere of Richard Curtis's comedies is still recognizable.

I think the real protagonist in "The boat that rocked" is music, that sound pop-rock that in the 60's began to move the world, and to be opposed by the establishment as a dangerous weapon in the hands of the multitudes, as a threat to a well consolidated but no longer valid system. Among unreal situations, a totally-lacking plot, among odd and eccentric characters, what only matters is that power of music to revive one's spirits, to give voice to the most uncontrolled, animal, ancestral instincts of man. And thus becomes, in my opinion, the most vivid scene that of those hundreds of records floating on the water, the symbol of a generation, of an era that was then ready to explode, and that no strict establishment could have wiped away, even once illegal radio stations were shut down.

No revolutionary message is conveyed: it's a good-humoured and at intervals melancholic tribute to a generation who, maybe ingenuously, but deeply, and truly believed in out of time-values, friendship, respect, love, and believed that music was a strong, and powerfully effective means to convey them. Even if you don't belong to that generation, each of us has experienced, one or more times in one's life, the communion of a piece of music with the most sensitive chords of our soul: it's about something emotional, but also physical and that's what the director just wants to celebrate.

If you are fond of music, or simply you have once in your life been moved by a song, you will like this movie, or at least enjoy it for what it is, without the necessity of too much criticism.