Alan Partridge

Name: Alan Partridge
Genre: Thriller, Comedy
Released: April 4, 2014
Duration: 90 min
Rating: 66
Cast: Colm Meaney, Karl Theobald, Steve Coogan, Tim Key

2014

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 27 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 38 Ratings

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6.9

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6.9	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 38 Ratings

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Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa

Now Playing: Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa

Movie Details & Credits

Magnolia Pictures | Release Date: April 4, 2014 | R

Starring: Colm Meaney, Karl Theobald, Steve Coogan, Tim Key

Summary: Famous DJ Alan Partridge (Steve Coogan) finds himself at the center of a siege, when a disgruntled fellow DJ (Colm Meaney) decides to hold their station hostage after learning that he’s getting sacked by the new management.

Director: Declan Lowney

Genre(s): Thriller, Comedy

Rating: R

Runtime: 90 min

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Critic Reviews

IndieWire Diana Drumm

Mar 28, 2014

Alan Partridge stays true to this small, very specific world of regional British radio and this class of local celebrity while also injecting the high-level drama needed to carry such a story to a much larger audience. It’s this balance that should win the film over for Alan Partridge fans and the general movie-going public alike. Read full review

James Mottram

Jul 25, 2013

Smartly executed, endlessly quotable and machine-gun quick, this is one of the funniest films of 2013. Accessible for Partridge novices and hugely rewarding for the faithful. Read full review

Elizabeth Weitzman

Apr 3, 2014

So clear your calendar. There’s no better time to get to know a character so obnoxiously stubborn that not even his own creator can shake him. Read full review

Nathan Rabin

Mar 3, 2014

Film doesn’t suit Alan Partridge as well as other media, but Coogan and company have nevertheless delivered a consistently lively satirical comedy that would stand on its own merits, even if it wasn’t weighed down by expectations more than 20 years in the making. Read full review

Stephen Dalton

Apr 3, 2014

Though not the finest screen outing for Coogan’s best-known alter ego, this is a worthy addition to the ever-growing Partridge archive, with enough weapons-grade comic zing in the first half to excuse the less sure-footed second. Read full review

Time Out London Tom Huddleston

Aug 8, 2013

The film has plenty to recommend it, thanks to a string of memorable one-liners and Coogan’s unmatched knack for skin-crawling physical comedy. But this is a long way from the back-of-the-net strike it should have been. Read full review

Nick Schager

Sep 28, 2013

Director Declan Lowney's film operates from a conceit that affords only minor opportunities for true hilarity. Read full review

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User Reviews

LegendaryLass

Feb 20, 2019

Rapid-fire Alan Partridge in a big screen story is a glorious thing. This one will make you want to watch it multiple times.

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

Rocco123

Apr 4, 2014

Not sure how Alpha Pappa got so many bad reviews unless they're not Partridge fans, in which case they were never probably going to like it anyways. The best part of the film is that it stuck to its small screen value without selling out like Ali G, and dumbing down too much.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

cigarillored

May 17, 2014

Ok, I'm an unabashed fan of Steve Coogan and Alan Partridge, but I'm trying to judge this movie on its own merits -- and it's simply fantastic. The beauty of Partridge is that he has always felt like a fully-rounded character, which is a credit to Coogan. Ricky Gervais is often hailed as aOk, I'm an unabashed fan of Steve Coogan and Alan Partridge, but I'm trying to judge this movie on its own merits -- and it's simply fantastic. The beauty of Partridge is that he has always felt like a fully-rounded character, which is a credit to Coogan. Ricky Gervais is often hailed as a genius for his creation and portrayal of David Brent, but Steve Coogan got there first. One cringes when Partridge opens his mouth, and yet we can't help but feel a touch of empathy for the man. It's a fine line, but Coogan walks it masterfully. I showed this film to a room full of cinephiles who, combined, have seen just about everything under the sun -- they laughed themselves stupid. At the end of the day it works because it's beautifully written, the lead actor is something of a comedic genius, and he's surrounded himself with a great supporting cast.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

oDjento

May 31, 2015

I'm an enormous far of the tv series and think they have excellently adapted the hilarious tv character over to he big screen. Obviously it's a movie which means some sort of pacing has to take place and it cannot be constant laughs like the tv show, but the laughs it does deliver (which areI'm an enormous far of the tv series and think they have excellently adapted the hilarious tv character over to he big screen. Obviously it's a movie which means some sort of pacing has to take place and it cannot be constant laughs like the tv show, but the laughs it does deliver (which are still very frequent) are as high quality as to what we've come to expect from the tv series. Obviously some people may not find this type pf humour as funny as it's mainly character based humour and good plain british humour, so it may be a hit or miss for some people. The film does not cash out and become over commercialised or americanised like how some tv series turn to after gaining a bigger budget for a film. I found it a hilarious ride and would recommend to a lot of people.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

liamexe

Jun 14, 2022

When his mission goes horribly wrong, the cops are called. There's a lot of over-the-top comedy here. The greatest of British comedy. Like Hot Fuzz, this is a small town film.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

DawdlingPoet

Nov 27, 2021

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. This is a very funny movie, although it definitely helps if your already familiar with the character of Alan Partridge from Coogan's TV shows. This features the usual macho, sarcastic quips and dialogue that you'd expect from said character. The story is pretty over the top but of course thats whats great because it leads to some crazy scenarios which is where alot of the comedy comes from - he'd never admit to being in over his head but obviously he is. Its funny watching the war of the personalities as it were, with others from the station, particularly the angry Pat Farrell - its like a battle of ego's, of sorts.

To me this seemed more like a almost feature length length episode of one of his TV shows rather than a specific motion picture as such, I suppose. One of my favourite characters in his shows is Lynne, Alan's naive, anxious and rather shy assistant. One criticism I'd have of this, being aware of the characters, is the lack of scenes involving her. From a film point of view, its alright but there isn't too much in the way of visual effects or drama as such, its certainly more of a dry comedy than anything else, although that's to be expected really but it may seem perhaps a little bit dull to others who aren't familiar with Partridge.

As far as the content is concerned, there's toilet humour (of sorts), the comedy is pretty childish (as is to be expected if you know the character) but amusing, with some fairly clever wordplay puns and other funny dialogue. There are the almost inevitable (given the character) sex references and mild to moderate violence shown, with some bloody impact shown but its nothing especially extreme. As well as this, there is also some strong language present and the movie carries a 15 rating, which, as ever, seems fair.

Pace wise, the story moves at a decent pace, although I would say that sometimes there was a bit too much in the way of straight dialogue and it was starting to get a little bit dull. Its a bit daft but thats part of the fun of course! the main theme I suppose, if any, is to do with worrying about getting old and being 'past it', so the situation Partridge finds himself in is ideal for him as he'd been doing his usual job of looking out for number one, finding out he might be in the firing line and (unbeknownst to most anyone else) starting to feel the heat of younger people digging in to him on the airwaves.

Coogan is on his usual form, this movie is certainly no challenge for him - if anything, its a bit of a walk through the park really, portraying the macho, cocky DJ who is trying to stay as no. 1, to be loved by the media again. The rest of the cast im not very familiar with but the acting is decent enough, I'd say.

This movie is pretty short as modern movies go, at just under or about an hour and a half long - any longer and it could have become a bit too tedious I suppose.

Ultimately this is just a bit of fun, it certainly isn't likely to attract much interest from award ceremonies or the like but its entertaining and has its funny moments, so its decent enough and its certainly what I'd call distinctively British, which might come as a relief to some, if they were concerned he'd somehow be Americanised for the big screen (thinking back, I wasn't entirely impressed with the first Mr Bean movie - that was a slight disaster(!)).

Yes I'd recommend this movie to fans of Alan Partridge but for anyone not so familiar with him, you may quite enjoy this or find it a bit daft or a bit dull as a movie, so otherwise perhaps not? its certainly worth a watch when it comes on TV if your not sure though. There are some funny situations and comedy, though it is rather childish but thats to be expected - its quite entertaining and a bit of a laugh is the bottom line, though not much more than that, so I'd say overall its a good movie but it won't be to everyones tastes.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Trailesque

Apr 30, 2021

This was probably the wrong place to start, and I only saw the TV show a couple of times way back when. It has its moments, but relies too much on Coogan's charisma and spontaneity, which start wearing thin.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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