Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa

There have been numerous movie versions of popular British TV series over the years. And the results have by and large not been good. Most of the time, they seem to go on holiday. At the very least, they always make the story 'more cinematic'. They involve the sitcom characters in a larger than life story. Or they go to Spain. I've never understood the logic of this approach, as the sitcoms are popular in the first place for being about a particular small-scale situation. Once the characters are transported out of this, a crucial part of what makes them work in the first place is lost. I can't help but think that film-makers continually mis-read the public on this point. What we want in a film version of a loved TV show is more of the same but for 90 minutes as opposed to 30. This leads on to Alan Partridge.

'I'm Alan Partridge' was in my opinion one of the funniest TV series ever devised. In particular the first season was comedy gold from start to finish. So, what of the movie version? On the whole it was pretty funny but it did feel the need to incorporate a 'big story' into the narrative. Again, this makes no real sense, seeing as Alan himself is so very amusing because he is a mediocre TV presenter who lives in a realistic world. The humour comes out of the fact that his situations are believable and mundane. In this film the writers have felt the need to involve him at the centre of an armed siege and he gets involved in life or death situations. In a similar way to the 'Are You Being Served?' team going to the Costa del Sol for a group holiday, this story is not true to the character and doesn't really play to his strengths. The storyline is overall a little lame and it awkwardly fits in important characters from the series like Michael and Lynn – both of whom aren't very well used. Partridge himself is funny – very funny at times – but even he isn't really on top form, simply because the writing isn't as good as the TV series. Steve Coogan is always worth watching though and anything with Partridge is as well so the movie is worth seeing if you are a fan of either. It's still a good enough comedy but just pales a bit considering the quality of the TV show and the unnecessarily unPartridge-like story-line. So, overall it's pretty funny but like all cinematic versions of British TV series, a little frustrating overall; although in fairness, it's one of the better attempts but probably only due to the genius of the Partridge character.

First things first... I hear, for some people, Alan Partridge is the epitome of irritating. I've heard him described as one of the most hated TV characters of all time. However, with only this movie for reference, I have to say I strongly disagree. True, he is a bit full of himself and has a tendency to say inappropriate things... but who doesn't? He's certainly FAR more appealing than the 'young and hip' brigade that want to fire him after they've taken over his Norwich radio station. Was his persona here toned down from his TV shows? I haven't a clue... he just comes across as a slightly dotty, but ultimately charming middle aged bloke.

There's are lots of little laughs everywhere, and Steve Coogan is a master of understated wit. Keep your ear trained for some of the best gags. Colm Meaney also makes an impact as the Irish DJ, who must be the most non-threatening hostage taker in history. But being such a fan of Star Trek Deep Space Nine, it's hard to imagine him as anything but the bumbling Miles O'Brien. Oh well, that's my problem. Another laudable aspect is the hearkening back to the old ways of telecasting: when you could say stuff on the airways, without every word being scanned by a committee. AND you could play music that wasn't on the 'approved' list.

Hi, Al? My request is The Chicken Song by Spitting Image. Go on, fire it up. 7/10

When I first discovered the premise of Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa, which is a siege of the North Norfolk Digital building by a disgruntled former employee, I was concerned that, like many big screen adaptations, Alan Partridge was departing from its humble, unspectacular roots.

By half way into the film, my concerns had unfortunately been confirmed. There are gun shots, fire-extinguishers to the face, explosions, armed policeman; it is by no means an action film, but since when was there such commotion in Alan's life?

It was the desperate loneliness, alienation and banality of Alan's life in the original TV series that made audiences laugh and cringe while pitying and sometimes despising the pathetic central character. When I got home completely deflated after watching Alpha Papa, I reminded myself of just how good Alan could be by watching YouTube clips of the 1997 series.

A single five minute scene of Alan attending a funeral captured the essence of the character. The dialogue is so rich, almost every line provided a laugh and I was cringing at Alan's complete and utter social ineptitude. Throughout the series you learn Alan's behaviour, it doesn't take one long to know when Alan has an agenda; he is so self-centred, immature and incredibly tactless that the viewer can read him like a book. It's both amusing and toe-curlingly embarrassing to see Alan converse with people and deal with his many problems.

All of the subtlety and character study is missing in the film. Alan is no longer a sad-man, a complete liability. He's still cringe-worthy, particularly in scenes where he attempts to court a colleague, but none of the gags even scrape the surface of the programme's brilliance.

The gags are really quite tired. They're predictable and rehashed, particularly scenes that initially appear melodramatic but are then abruptly interrupted by an action or one-liner like a needle scratching across vinyl. There's also a genre-aware armed stand-off scene towards the end where the characters have 'humourous', flippant exchanges despite the immediate danger in an 'In Bruges' fashion, only not funny. More than once I found myself sighing with disappointment and embarrassment at just how off-the-mark and rehashed the comedy was.

Just like the film's premise, Coogan's performance is overblown, he needed to reel himself in. There would be flashes of classic Partridge, but generally both the dialogue and slapstick comedy just died. I commend Coogan's skill for miming perfectly to Roachford's 'Cuddly Toy', however it just wasn't as funny as his air bass performance of Gary Numan's 'Music for Chameleons' in the second series. Also, Alan doesn't look right in the film. His appearance is still demonstrably uncool, however he isn't as awfully square and repellent as he was in the series. If anything, Alan's ageing process seems to be in reverse.

The two principal characters of the programme, Lynn, Alan's devoted and criminally underpaid secretary, and Michael, Alan's good natured friend, seldom appear in the film. These characters were crucial in the series as they revealed many facets of Alan's personality, exposing just how self-absorbed and manipulative he is whilst also showing how utterly dependent he is on their attention.

We have the original team of Coogan and Iannucci, however it lacks almost every element that made the series so funny, eminently quotable and re-watchable. It shares very little in common with its televisual sibling, all Alpha Papa has is a caricature of a caricature and a thin, boring siege plot.

While I have a bazillion reviews to my credit here on IMDb, I must tell you up front that I am not the best person to be reviewing this movie. This is because I have never seen the TV series on which this film is based and I am not particularly familiar with Steve Coogan. So, unlike many viewers, this is my first time and I cannot compare the movie with the show.

The film begins with some corporate folks coming to the radio station where Alan (Coogan) works. They are there to make changes and he and the staff are pretty scared. It appears that Alan is the big change and he's going to be let go. But, being a weasel, he manages to focus their attention on someone else--Pat Farrell (Colm Meaney). However, when Pat is instead fired, he loses it and goes on a shooting spree. He also takes a bunch of hostages and it's up to Alan to try to help the police to get the folks out alive. However, being a weasel, he also hopes to gain a lot of attention for himself and thus improve his ratings! In fact, as the film progresses, you really see that this is Partridge's #1 goal.

This movie is a very funny and EXTREMELY dark comedy. Such topics are usually NOT the basis for a comedy and the film manages to tackle a sick topic like this and still make it very watchable. However, at times, the film does have a few lulls--not serious ones but the pacing could have been just a bit better. Worth seeing--especially if you like your humor pitch black in tone.

Radio DJ Alan Partridge (Steve Coogan) works at a local station in Norwich. They are taken over by a big corporation. He crashes a board meeting and discovers that it's either him or Pat Farrell (Colm Meaney). He backstabs Pat who gets fired. Later Pat comes back with a gun to take over the station. Pat demands to talk through Alan in exchange for three hostages. The cops press Alan into the radio station.

I was a bit concerned when shoots were fired but the movie never missed a beat. It kept the quick fire jokes going. I'll be honest that I've never heard of Alan Partridge. Although Steve Coogan has obviously honed in on the character. His machine gun delivery is really sharp. Even if you miss one joke, the next one is coming right on top of you. Colm Meaney has the high energy to keep up with Coogan.