A Load of Cock and Bull - Review by Mark Daly

 This review contains spoilers...

In the 19th Century Lawrence Sterne wrote A sprawling masterpiece called the life and opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentlemen.

It  was one of those books that was declared unfilmable. Enter Steve Coogan, Micheal Winterbottom, Mike Harding and Frank Cotteral Boyce.

These are some of the most talented people working the uk entertainment industry at the present time and in the names of Stephen fry, Noami harris, rob Bydon, Kellie McDonald and Dylan Moran and you have the potential for something very promising.

Steve Coogan plays the duel role of Tristram and Walter. Brydon takes the role of tobey, tristrams uncle, tristrams mother Elizabeth is played Keeley Hawes and the family doctor schlopp is played Dylan Moran.

Eventually, the shooting ends and Part two of the movie takes over. The rest of the movie has an extras feel to it, steve coogan comes out of this movie as something of an egotist, his scenes with brydon are the best in the movie, the scenes where Brydon is mocking Coogan are hilarious, there is one scene in particular which will be referred to by Uk film comedy historians in the future as the shoe scene where Brydon mocks the stuffing out of Coogan.

This version of Coogan is married with child to Jenny(KellieMcDonald) but you can see that the real coogan plays around, there is a scene with Noami Harris who is intense fassbinder fan and film gopher and drinks a lot and likes to have a good time which is why he was dumped by his wife.

This movie is very close to the bone for Coogan because there is the scene where he is interviewed by a sleazy journalist about his bad behaviour last year Courtney Love said that she had dated Coogan and she was expecting his child!

This movie is also a biting satire on the UK film industry and how they really have bugger all money to shoot anything, even when they hire Gillian Anderson, they have to cut out her character all together.

Funny, intelligent and very sharp, this movie was released in time for the baftas next month and I be shocked if it doesn’t do well. This is a film with one draw back, it will not travel. it is a local film for local people.

Over the closing credits Brydon and Coogan try to out Pacino one another. Hilarious stuff....

A cock and Bull Story gets a rating of: 4.5 - out of - 5