Pirate Radio

Pirate Radio is a re-release of The Boat That Rocked which came out in the UK back in April. Since then, it has gone through a few changes, most notably the removal of 20 minutes of footage.

The film stars Phillip Seymour Hoffman as the captain of a pirate radio ship broadcasting rock and roll to millions of listeners across the United Kingdom. While the British government are doing everything in their power to try and shut them down, everyone aboard the ship is having the time of their lives distributing rock and roll to the masses. Carl (Tom Sturridge) is the newest member of the crew and boy is he in for one unforgettable wild ride.

Hoffman and Bill Nighy are only two of the big names attached to Pirate Radio but there are a ton of great comedic actors in this film. Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead), Chris O’Dowd, Jack Davenport, and plenty others make appearances throughout. Each contributes their own personal humor to the film, from the hilariously named Twatt to the sex driven Dave.

Beside the humorous plot line, there’s an actual story involved about friendship, freedom and other more mature themes. There’s something that everyone can relate to, even if you just want a pure laugh out loud film. One of the biggest problems with the UK release is still a major complaint with its US release; the length. While is has been shortened down to less than two hours, it still feels much longer. Some scenes tend to drag on a bit or are completely unnecessary.

One last complaint I have is where was Richard Ayoade? The film starts both Chris O’Dowd and Katherine Parkinson from The IT Crowd but Maurice Moss was surprisingly absent. While this had no real impact on the film, it would have been super awesome to see the trio together.

Pirate Radio is definitely something you should see. It’s got humor, it’s got plot (although not entirely based on the true events it promotes), and it’s got fantastic entertainment value.