Special Correspondents

I wasn't sure what I was expecting to be fair, I love Ricky Gervais and I own everything he has done. A lot of negativity had come from various reviews I'd read and I thought - Well I'll be the judge, jury and executioner!

Admittedly the film has a slow start but does build, as the film continued I got more into it and was eventually gripped even though it was quite predictable the direction it was heading in. For me Ricky's on-screen presence makes it automatically feel-good, especially for me as I'm a fan of his work. Occasionally throwing some funny one-liners in, occasionally sounding like his character of Andy Millman from Extras which for me helped keep the Ricky we know and love current. Eric Bana was a great choice to play the main reporter, at first I thought it would be like sticking Arnie with David Jason kind of combo but they play well off each other and have great chemistry, Eric as we know is Australian so a convincing American accent was spot on.

Overall, ignore the harsh reviews, I know it's opinion but let's face it, they ain't got a clue what a genius Ricky is, it's not always about the comedy, the film isn't hilarious but is quite funny in places, Ricky has tried his hand here at something else and I believe pulled it off well. Highly recommended if you love Ricky's work and want to see him try something different then go for it, 9/10 is a deserved rating!

I laughed throughout this movie, it had a tight clever script that was delivered by a strong ensemble group.

If you like Ricky Gervais's work then this is of the highest order. I understand many won't get the British humour, the anti-hero, the underdog, the ironic situations, the self-deprecation, etc etc. But if you do this is a gem.

Special Correspondents is funny but not anything spectacular. It's another one of those comedies where people make bad decisions and semi- funny things happens. I was eager to see this movie due to the cast and the story, and I expected to be entertained after seeing the first trailer. But unfortunately, it fell a little flat.

It's the perfect movie for those times you just want to watch something, be mildly entertained but not forced to really pay attention to the story. If you are easily entertained by stupid things, this movie is for you. But if you are tired of cheap jokes, clichés and stupidity, then this movie might not be for you.

My rating is based on the fact that in the end I did not feel like I had wasted a few hours watching it, it made me silently laugh a few times and it was decent. Decent but not special.

I'm basically a really big fan of Ricky Gervais (and if you haven't seen anything he's done before you should know that he's one of those people who you either love or hate – look him and his work up before continuing!). I pretty much watch whatever he's in, so I was quite happy to find this film on Netflix. At first, I was disappointed, but – I'm pleased to say – that it got better.

It's about a couple of radio news reporters who miss their flight to a war-torn country and have to fake their reports from the comfort of a friend's apartment in New York. However, things don't go too well and begin to spiral out of control. As I watched it I wasn't that impressed with the way it began. Basically, there weren't that many jokes in the opening half hour. I guess that they were trying to set up the characters and general plot, but the ratio of laughter to screen time suffered. However, I'm glad I stuck with it – it gets better.

After the half hour mark it does get funnier. If you've seen the promotional material you'll probably see that Ricky Gervais is starring with Eric Bana. Despite the former Incredible Hulk being the more obvious choice for leading man, I never really felt that it was 'his' film. It's like he's a token leading man to Ricky Gervais. I only noticed in the end credits that the film is both written and directed by Gervais. It's almost like he knows he's not leading man material and did his best to give a more 'traditional' star the chance to 'front' the film. However, Eric Bana never really seemed that comfortable in the role and, despite being the front man, is also the straight man. Gervais (or others) get all the best (and by 'best' I mean funniest) lines and by the time the film ends you sort of realise that it's Gervais' character who, despite being set up as 'Robin' to Bana's 'Batman' was the one who had gone on the journey and been through the character arc.

But, like I said, at the end of the day I was glad I watched it. But then I'm a fan of Gervais and, despite what you may think when you sit down to watch it, it's his film and Bana is actually the supporting cast member. I've seen some reviews on the net saying that 'Special Correspondents' is boring. I wouldn't say that, but I also wouldn't say that many people would feel like they got their money's worth if they'd paid full price to see it at the cinema. Netflix is doing wonders making and broadcasting their own stuff. And this is a prime example. It's sort of a made-for-TV movie which you'll probably enjoy because it's part of your package and haven't really had to pay through the nose to watch.

Interesting cast of Ricky Gervais, America Ferrara, Kelly Macdonald, Kevin Pollack, Benjamin Bratt, and Eric Bana. Vera Farmiga is a villain, the unhappy wife of Ricky Gervais.

Kelly Macdonald is the co-worker who falls for the beleagured Ricky Gervais. Gervais plays his usual role of the down-trodden common man who is under-appreciated. No jokes or one-liners here, just humor.

Most of the story is pretty warm-hearted interaction between the characters. America Ferrera steals a few scenes with the warmth and friendliness of her character, who plays the local bar / taco shop owner that helps Gervais and Bana pull off their radio news scam.

Eric Bana is playing the straight man to Gervais, and is a bit of a villain too. This movie reminded me of the old Abbott and Costello films. The chemistry between Bana and Gervais was straight from them. Like most of the old Abbott and Costello films, it was innocent fun with good intentions.