Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story (2005)

I just watched this last night and it was really great! If you are a fan of Steve Coogan and/or Rob Brydon and/or director Michael Winterbottom and/or British humour you might like this! So, I was pretty kean on Winterbottom and Coogan's (and Brydon's, if only a small but quite funny role) prior collaboration 24 Hour Party People about the Madchester era of 80s new wave music. Here, they take on the unfilmable novel, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentlemen, and make a great interpretation of it. What we have here is Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon playing a version of themselves acting in a film adaptation of an unbelievably complex (if not meandering) novel. The film starts with a simple telling of the story, but then we break off into the film production and then layers and layers are added on until the end of the film is barely the end of the production of the film within the film of the novel. You kind of have to just see it.

Coogan and Brydon.

But it's quite funny. Coogan and Brydon's escalating rivalry is hilarious to watch. After having worked on set a bunch I also enjoy seeing the behind the scenes stuff with all the crew members--including production assistants! I also enjoy this movie because it has a number of references to another film I quite enjoy: Fellini's 8 1/2. Along with the use of Nino Rota's theme for 8 1/2, Winterbottom's film has similar subject matter, and handles it in a similar way as Fellini's masterpiece. Like in 8 1/2, no one really seems to know what the film is going to look like (least of which the director!), and we are often flipping between reality, fantasy, dreams, and the diegetic world of the film without warning.

Brydon and Coogan.

There are some great scenes, especially all the ones featuring Coogan vs. Brydon, like when they compare teeth colours or Pacino impressions, or when Brydon insists Coogan help him identify how big his bald patch is. I especially enjoyed the extensive sequence where Lord Shandy, his brother, and the doctor are all downstairs in the study nonchalantly smoking pipes and pouring over historic battlefield maps, while, not out of ear-shot, Lady Shandy is literally screaming in pain (waiting for said doctor) as she is about to give birth to Tristram, it's quite hilarious (in a later scene the actress remarks about how she's been screaming for the last four days)! Have a look at the quite-funny trailer, as well!

24-Hour Party People (2002)

Here's yet another great movie that I saw just a little while ago for the first time and wondered how it was possible I hadn't seen it yet: Michael Winterbottom's 2002 24-Hour Party People. Brilliant! It's the funny and true story of how bands like The Happy Mondays, A Certain Ratio, and Joy Division (and then later New Order) came to be in the crazy drug- and sex-addled 1980s Manchester, UK.

The very talented Steve Coogan, as Tony Wilson.

Taking the lead is the brilliant Steve Coogan as Tony Wilson, a journalist-cum-music-producer who stakes everything to promote, record, and exhibit this revolutionary music he believes in.Coogan's wry style is a pleasure to watch as he interacts both with (musically) historical characters, as well as when he breaks the forth wall and addresses the audience directly. Coogan, and actually a few other people, turn to the camera and speak about what is happening in the film, or what to expect in the future, and it works really well. It can be a risky proposition sometimes because it obviously can take the audience out of the diegesis of the film, but here it enhances the whole experience.

Madchester.

This film is a love-letter to a very flawed time and place, with some very flawed characters, but you can't deny that it must have been a very exciting time for musicians. Wilson's idealistic dedication to the music, to promoting all these bands is truly amazing. If you enjoy music by Joy Division et al, or are a fan of Steve Coogan, this is essential viewing. Even if you aren't, it is definitely a fun romp through the late 70s and into the 80s of a very distinct time in pop culture history and is littered with great moments. It also contains a great blend of real archival footage mixed with stuff filmed for the movie, as well as some of the real people from this time period in cameos and other small roles normally reserved for extras. Highly recommended. For a taste, watch this great little trailer: