Johnny English 2003

     When the funeral service of a British spy is attacked, almost all of the remaining spies are killed.  Only one spy is left and this person is now Britain's last hope.  Johnny English and his sidekick Bough have been assigned the task of investigating the theft of the British Crown Jewels.  The prime suspect is a mysterious French entrepreneur known as Pascal Sauvage.  English and Bough soon find out the horrifying truth behind the theft and Sauvage.  And, it's not going to be an easy job to bring him to justice!!

     Rowan plays a character who became famous in Britain as the star of a long-running series of credit card commercials.  Johnny English is a low-level functionary in the British Secret Service.  He’s pressed into active duty and his assignment is to foil a plot to steal the Crown Jewels.  His actions show how dangerously incompetent he really is!!  He lectures on how the thieves got into the Tower without noticing he is standing on the edge of a tunnel opening.  He can't even be trusted to drive during a chase scene and spends most of one chase in a car suspended from a moving wreckers' crane. 

     This film is a slapstick comedy with a few strong words and some bathroom jokes.  There is some spy adventure peril including guns but no blood or intense violence.  Kids not familiar with the long-term French-English political and cultural clashes may be confused by the animosity between the French and English characters?  This is a hilariously funny movie!!  Johnny English cannot do anything correctly!!  5* (I really liked this movie)

87 min, Action directed by Peter Howitt and written by Neal Purvis, Robert Wade and William Davies with Rowan Atkinson, Tasha de Vasconcelos, Ben Miller, Greg Wise, Douglas McFerran, Steve Nicolson, Terence Harvey, Kevin McNally, Tim Pigott-Smith, Nina Young, Rowland Davies, Natalie Imbruglia, Philippa Fordham, John Malkiovich, Tim Berrington.

Note:  Imdb 6.2* out of 10* with 147,769 reviews, Rotten Tomatoes 33% with 122 critics 50% with 401,954 audience scores, Common Sense Media Nell Minow, 2* out of 5*, age 8+, 1* drinking, drugs & smoking 2* violence & scariness, sexy stuff, language, Roger Ebert 1 1/2*, Amazon 4.5* out of 5* with 1203 ratings, Letterboxd 2.8* out of 5* with 16 fans.

Special Note:  Rowan Atkinson is also known as Mr. Bean, the star of Bean 1997 and also as the star of the PBS reruns of The Black Adder.  He's the master of looking thoughtful after having committed a grievous breach of manners, logic, the law, personal hygiene or common sense!!