Writer: Ricky Gervais
Director: Ricky Gervais
A long time after gaining some degree of fame from fly-on-the-wall documentary The Office, David Brent is back. This time he's about to take a break from his current job as a sales rep to go touring with his band Foregone Conclusion, hoping that their live performances will lead to a record deal...
Anyone who's seen The Office (and there must be quite a lot of you out there) will find themselves on familiar territory here and if you're expecting to chuckle and cringe in equal measure that's exactly what David Brent's latest outing delivers. You may very well be watching whole scenes through your fingers, it gets that uncomfortable in places.
If this type of humour doesn't float your boat then Life On The Road isn't going to convert you. It doesn't exactly break any new ground and if you were irritated by The Brentmeister before then you're going to be just as irritated, if not more, by him now. Of course, if Gervais' comic creation hits your particular spot chances are you're going to find plenty to amuse and entertain.
Personally, I'm a huge fan of The Office and I have to admit that I actually laughed until I cried during one excruciating sequence featuring a song about "the handicapped" which is a prime example of Brent trying so hard to be politically correct that he misses the point entirely and concocts a set of lyrics that manages to offend pretty much everybody.
As the movie progresses it does throw in more and more appeals to the audience's sympathy and to be honest, it does have a point when it suggests that Brent is actually a decent bloke underneath it all. He just tries too hard - way too hard - to be liked and he believes that he has to entertain people constantly. Yes, he does behave like a monumental pillock a lot of the time but there are moments where it's difficult not to feel sorry for him and by the end I was hoping that somehow his disaster-filled tour would close in inexplicably successful fashion.
So, in the final analysis, does one of Berkshire's most famous (if fictitous) sons deserve another outing? On balance, I'd certainly say yes. Life On The Road doesn't quite match up to the very best episodes of The Office, perhaps because Gervais isn't surrounded by the familiar faces of the Wernham Hogg set-up, but it hits most of the right notes and is often quite sweet. When you're not clenching up and wishing that Brent would just stop talking instead of digging himself into a deeper and more embarrassing hole.
And speaking of embarrassing holes....nah, I'm not going to go all Brent.
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