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COMMENTARY ON DAVID BRENT LIFE ON THE ROADMOVIE TVLife On The Road is presumably intended as a swan song for the character of David Brent and predictably the film as a whole falls short of the TV Series, but does still produce plenty of laughs. COMMENTARY ON DAVID BRENT LIFE ON THE ROADMOVIE SERIESThe Office was like a breath of fresh air when it first arrived back in 2001 and it is a TV Series that I adore and can watch over and over again - I believe this was one of the first comedy series that brought about what can only be described as 'cringe-humour'. It's not in the same league as The Office and nor was it likely to be, but it's still reasonably enjoyable with some very funny Brent moments and the best parody soundtrack I have heard to date.įilmed in the same style as the TV Series this is a fly-on-the-wall documentary about everyone's favourite cringe-inducing boss David Brent as he attempts to hit the big time as a rock star with his band Foregone Conclusion. COMMENTARY ON DAVID BRENT LIFE ON THE ROADMOVIE MOVIEI'm not sure this movie ever needed to be made but the surprisingly impressive music just about justifies its existence. I don't know why Gervais chose to introduce this dynamic, but it was certainly a fundamental error. Fortunately, things improve towards the end and Doc Brown (who he clearly reveres) is always nice to him, but it is still a very uncomfortable experience for much of the movie. It is often quite difficult to watch and just feels really dark and depressing. The team of musicians he puts together are completely dismissive of him, refuse to interact with him and are happy to watch him flush his pensions away so they can get paid. Brent's new colleagues are generally very unpleasant to him and don't hold anything back. Unfortunately, this is exactly what happens in Life on The Road. This compassionate handling of Brent was such a huge part of The Office's success because nobody would enjoy watching someone so desperate for approval being consistently mocked and insulted. One of the most touching moments in the whole series was when Tim accepts his offer to go out for a drink, knowing that nobody else really wants to and that his feelings would be hurt. People were rarely nasty to him or outwardly condescending. The way his colleagues and bosses treated him was with frustration but also a level of sensitivity and understanding. What worked so well in The Office was that Brent was this horribly awkward, clumsy, narcissistic man but he was also completely harmless and tragically needy. However, there is one major overriding flaw with this movie and that is the way the other characters respond to Brent. It also contains some of the funniest lyrics you will ever hear. And not in an ironic way either this is genuinely enjoyable pop music, well written with decent vocals. There is no two ways about it, Brent's/Gervais' music is actually pretty damn good. The major positive about this movie is the soundtrack. Tom Basden and Doc Brown are both pretty good and work well with Gervais, despite some major flaws in the writing. Obviously, he is working with a much weaker and less-developed cast so the magic of The Office is simply not there but nor should you expect it to be. Gervais is very solid as Brent and there are plenty of hilarious moments. As it turns out, I quite enjoyed Life on The Road. Fortunately, it was only to be about Brent himself and none of the other characters would be involved, but I still felt this had the potential to be a disaster. So I was a little dubious to say the least when this new David Brent movie was announced. One of the show's biggest strengths was its brevity and I always lived in fear of a dreaded third series that could potentially tarnish its great reputation. I'm a big fan of Ricky Gervais' work and consider The Office to be not just his greatest creation, but also one of the best TV comedies ever made. ![]()
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