The Boat That Rocked

...others, like me, can’t see the attraction. When I first heard about this film a few months ago, I thought, what a wonderful premise, but I was also doubtful if I’d bother to watch it since it comes from Richard Curtis’ stable.

It’s the summer of 1966 and there are no British radio stations which yet cater for people who like modern music such as rock and roll. Jazz and classical music still rule the airwaves. At least not officially. ...
...25 million people a day. The radio station is called Radio Rock and has 8 male disc jockey’s playing around the clock.

This is met with outright hostility from the Prime Minister and the Minister in charge, Mr Dormandy. Although the radio station isn’t acting illegally, the government simply don’t like not being able to control them. Mr Dormandy promises to close them down.

The premise is loosely based on Radio Caroline, ... more

This is a film only review.

Some people love Richard Curtis’ films, others, like me, can’t see the attraction. When I first heard about this film a few months ago, I thought, what a wonderful premise, but I was also doubtful if I’d bother to watch it since it comes from Richard Curtis’ stable.

It’s the summer of 1966 and there are no British radio stations which yet cater for people who like modern music such as rock and roll. Jazz and classical music still rule the airwaves. At least not officially. Off the shores of Suffolk, a pirate radio station is broadcasting non stop rock n roll music to an estimated 25 million people a day. The radio station is called Radio Rock and has 8 male disc jockey’s playing around the clock.

This is met with outright hostility from the Prime Minister and the Minister in charge, Mr Dormandy. Although the radio station isn’t acting illegally, the government simply don’t like not being able to control them. Mr Dormandy promises to close them down.

The premise is loosely based on Radio Caroline, the pirate radio station located in the North sea in the 1960’s, which met with the same antipathy from the real government at the time. DJ’s who started their careers on board Caroline included Dave lee Travis, Johnnie Walker and Tony Blackburn. Who’d have thought that three stalwarts of British Broadcasting now, were once pirates?

~ The main characters on board ~

Quentin, played by Bill Nighy. Quentin is the ship’s boss. He’s a suave, debonair charmer with an impressive collection of smoking jackets. On the face of it he’s quite a conservative man, and tries to keep the men in line, almost like a father figure to them. He isn’t adverse to smoking spliffs though, and has quite an eye for the ladies.

Bill has been in quite a few of Richard Curtis’ previous productions, such as Love, Actually and Four Weddings. He’s also had big roles in recent hits like Notes on a scandal and the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. He’s an actor I enjoy watching, but seems to be slightly typecast, and this role isn’t hugely different to others that he has played recently. Having said that, he’s still fun to watch, and convincing in his role here.

The Count, played by Philip Seymour Hoffman. He was the main attraction for me, and the reason I actually bothered to go and see this Curtis production. Here, we never find out the Count’s real name, but that doesn’t matter. He’s the biggest and brashest of all the DJ’s on board, but also one of the kindest. When simple Simon announces his impending marriage, it’s the Count who insists on a Stag night. When Simon’s marriage then hit’s a crisis (sorry if that’s considered a spoiler), the Count declares war on the man he considers responsible. He loves his job, and would do practically anything to stay broadcasting, as we see.

Philip’s one of his generation’s finest actors in my opinion. He can turn his hand to almost anything, from the Oscar winning Capote (which his own company produced), to smaller funnier roles in fluffy comedies such as Along Came Polly. This role is probably most similar to the character he played in Almost Famous, Lester Bangs. I thought he was excellent in this film, he steals every scene he’s in however much or little he plays in it. I can’t think of any other actor of his age who could have filled the Count’s boots so admirably.

Young Carl- played by Tom Sturridge. He’s a teenager who’s just been expelled from his single sex school. He joins the boat after his mum packs him off to spend some time with Quentin, who’s his Godfather. Quentin becomes the closest thing to a father figure Carl has ever known. Carl apparently, is the wonderful result of a few nights of lust and never knew his real dad. Quentin, on first being introduced to him, asks if they’ve ever met before. They haven’t, but as Quentin explains, he’s forgotten a whole decade thanks to some pretty wild partying. I didn’t understand why his mother would have thought this trip a good idea for her son, but we understand more when we finally meet her ourselves. Carl seems like a very unworldly young man, and rather shy here, which is odd considering he’s on board because he was caught smoking in school. He soon comes out of his shell once onboard. He is one of the main characters of the film, as several smaller storylines revolves around his first proper encounters with young women, and a search for a father figure. Most of the DJ’s (with one exception, who pulls Carl’s new girlfriend) take him under their wing. Although the film isn’t told through Carl‘s eyes, I thought it was risky using someone so young as the main protagonist. After all, there are other actors here who are far better known, but it works.

This is the biggest role to date for the young actor, and I can’t say that I’ve seen any of his previous work, but Tom was perfectly cast for the role. A young teenager on the cusp of adulthood, he‘s believably quite naïve and awkward.

Thick Kevin - played by Tom Brooke. Carl’s new roommate on the boat. His nickname sums him up nicely. His main role in the film seems to be as a focus for some of the more obvious gags. For example, when they’re celebrating Christmas on board the boat, he comes dressed as the Easter Bunny. Essentially a sweet bloke, but oh so dim and sappy. He does have one moment in the film where ‘he’s been thinking’, and that is when he suggests to Carl why he might be on board the boat. This is a revelation to Carl and gets him thinking.

Tom Brooke isn’t an actor I’m familiar with, but he’s listed as having had a minor part in a Bridget Jones film on imdb.com. He’s good in the role, but to be honest it’s not a role that would stretch anyone playing the part. Most of the gags are at Kevin’s expense, and he doesn’t even need good comic timing.

Simple Simon - played by Chris O’Dowd. Rather bland and staid, he hides his light under a bushell. He announces his impending marriage to an American girl after a whirlwind courtship (they met two weeks prior) and subsequently they get spliced on board. The couple of scenes directly after the marriage almost had me in tears.

Chris is probably best known for playing Roy in The IT Crowd on television. I thought he was excellent in this role, he manages to bring just the right amount of pathos to the character. In one particular scene, when he’s alone with his new wife, his facial expressions are wonderful and you can‘t help but empathise with him.

Gavin - played by Rhys Ifans. When they first realise they might be shut down by the Government, Quentin arranges for Gavin to return. Gorgeous Gavin is treated like royalty on the boat when he arrives. He’s the closest thing to a celebrity on board. He previously worked on Radio Rock, but left to travel around America a year earlier, and now his return is greeted with excitement by everyone on board except the Count, who sees him as a threat. It’s like watching two silverbacks jostling for supremacy. The boat ain’t big enough for both of them.

I’ve always been slightly indifferent to Rhys‘ acting, and I usually find him overrated in the films he does, with the exception of The Shipping News. I did think he was well cast as the somewhat louche Gavin though. The role required someone believable as a gorgeous womaniser with no scruples, as you soon find out, and Rhys carried it off effortlessly. Could this be art imitating life perhaps? Previously he’s worked with Richard Curtis on Notting Hill, with the infamous door opening scene.

Bob- played by Ralph Brown. Hippy Bob’s an enigma. He works the early shift (I think it was 3-5am). The guys on board only meet him for the first time after he’s been there about 7 months. We hardly ever see his character, and on the face of it he’s the least consequential of all the main characters. Muddy Waters run deep though.

Again, I’d not heard of Ralph before, and I don’t recall having seen him prior to this in anything, although he has a back catalogue of minor television roles.

The only adversary of their’s we see for any length of time is Alistair Dormandy. Played by Kenneth Branagh. Curiously, it’s difficult to guess how old Dormandy is supposed to be, he looks so staid and old fashioned. Quite which department Mr Dormandy heads, I’m not sure. He takes a personal dislike to the rebels on board Radio Rock, and vows to bring them down. He’s puritanical and totally without any joy in his life. Towards the end of the film, we see a more spiteful side to him as well.

This is a rather different, tongue in cheek role for Kenneth Branagh, who’s more noted for his classical work. He’s well cast as stuffy Dormandy and plays the part subtly, although it’s one of the smaller roles in the film.

As you can see, most of the main characters in the film are men. A few women I should probably also mention are Emma Thompson, who plays Carl’s flamboyant mother. She was totally unrecognisable when she first appeared on screen. She’s not uncaring towards Carl, although she doesn’t seem to be able to connect with him at all. The first sign of trouble at school and she packs young Carl off to a boat off the coast of Suffolk!

Another small part played is that of the boats cook: Felicity. She's a young pretty woman who's only allowed to stay on board because she's a lesbian, albeit an inexperienced one. Played here by Katherine Parkinson, better known for her role as Jen in the IT Crowd, if you've ever watched it. She's frightened of real relationships, so finds it easier living on board the boat with the DJ's. Cupid has other ideas though.

So why did I go?

As I already mentioned, I was initially put off going to see the film by the fact that it was written, directed and produced by Richard Curtis. Curtis’ films always seem to me to portray our capital city through rose-tinted specs, and they seemed aimed more towards the American perspective of what London is like than the grey, sometimes nasty reality. Richard’s London is not my London. But then this is only a film, so what does it matter? Perhaps it’s also the fact that many of his previous films have starred Hugh Grant, who I find hugely irritating. The only work of his that I enjoyed was About A Boy. Another related drawback for me is that this film has been so hyped up over the last few weeks, it’s been greeted with the same fanfare as Richard’s other offerings, which is another reason for me not to watch it. So why did I go? I read lots of reviews, which were mixed, and a good friend who’s on the Orange phone network persuaded me. Every Wednesday, their customers get a buy one cinema ticket, get one free deal. And I was a little curious. The premise sounded wonderful, what with the Radio Caroline history and the great ‘60’s music. And to be fair, Richard Curtis is the man behind Red Nose Day ( He founded Comic Relief along with his wife Emma Freud), so he‘s not all bad. But the best reason of all for me? Philip Seymour Hoffman. A man with such good judgement, when it comes to the films he’s in, I’d recently seen him in Doubt with Meryl Streep, and really he can do no wrong in my eyes. Honestly, if Mr Hoffman hadn’t taken the role of The Count, I would have been more ambivalent and probably waited until it came out on dvd before watching it.

And the music?

There was so much music, I’m just sorry that by the time I’d got home again, there were only a few songs I could remember. The bad news is that the most memorable song in question for me was David Bowie’s Let’s Dance. I mean, that was released in 1983! It’s the only track (along with Duffy singing a modern version of 'Stay with me baby' near the end) which I think wasn't a legitimate ’60’s songs. The good news is, Bowie is right at the end of the film, and it doesn’t seem out of place at all. Richard Curtis obviously wanted one great upbeat record to end the film on, and this one fitted the bill perfectly. Other tracks that you're sure to remember when you think of certain scenes in the movie are: A whiter shade of Pale, Dancing in the Streets, and the original version of Stay with me baby. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry when I saw that scene, it was quite strange.

And what was it like?

People fall in love, and some of the relationships falter just as quickly. If I had to sum it up in one sentence, I would say it’s a feelgood movie, a little bit frothy, and I can only reiterate with great music.

The script was wonderful, although it does rely in parts on slapstick comedy, but then you know what expect, and I think Mr Curtis delivers admirably. One thing puzzled me, and that was that the film is set in 1966, and young Carl is about 16, making his birthdate around 1950. That was surely a long time before the era of Free Love, and the advent of the contraceptive Pill and condoms. And yet we are led to believe that Carl's mum enjoyed all the freedom's, shall we say, back around 1950, of the era in which the film is actually set. Still, there's no harm trying to suspend disbelief for a while.

One of the cuter scenes in the film is where The Count tells his show's listeners with glee that he's going to use the F word. Quentin hurries in and cues him not to do it. They cut to a record and argue. If they say it live, that's definitely another nail in the coffin for the boat. The Count and Quentin both end up swearing. But not on air. Oh really? Watch it for yourself, Bill Nighy and PS Hoffman looked like they had a whale of a time filming it.

The cinematography was also first rate. There are lots of views of the ship from afar, with nothing else in sight, just a distant horizon with either clear blue skies or a setting sun. A slightly romanticised version of the reality for the DJ’s I’m sure, I mean we don’t really see so much as a wave, never mind bad weather, but then this is a feel-good movie isn’t it? I’m sure in reality, people became nauseous all the time, but not in this film!

This isn’t a film for special effects aficionado’s, but there is one huge one towards the end, which was highly enjoyable to watch. If you know the history of Radio Caroline, then think back to 1980. I’m not familiar with the history of pirate radio, or indeed it’s predecessors like radio Luxemborg, so the drama unfolding with this particular special effect came as a big surprise to me.

To be honest with you, I loved the film. It drew me in, and I warmed to most of the characters, thanks to the great acting involved. I would (and am!) definitely recommend this film. I would warn you that it is over two hours long at 130 minutes.

The film held it’s world premier in London on 23 March and was released nationwide yesterday, which is when I saw it. So far, I’ve read some negative criticism from both film critics and ordinary viewers which is a shame. Please don’t let that put you off, it really is worth watching. The soundtrack (coupled with La Hoffman) is enough to reason to purchase a ticket alone, even if like me, you‘re not a true Richard Curtis fan.

It's rated 15, due to some nudity and a few scenes with swearing.

This has been my longest review yet, so if you've read this far, then thank you! 

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