Bean (1997, PG-13)

 

That Richard Curtis, he’s a tough one to figure out.  There’s the sublime stuff, like Blackadder and “Vincent and the Doctor.”  There’s The Vicar of Dibley, of which I’ve seen a bit of and enjoyed a lot.  There’s the uneven Love Actually, and Four Weddings and a Funeral, with some interesting side plots/characters and a lousy main story.  And then, there’s Mr. Bean.

 

I’ll admit, I’ve hardly seen any of the series this movie is based on, but I don’t get Mr. Bean at all.  I don’t think he’s funny, and he mainly makes me embarrassed for Rowan Atkinson, who was so good in Blackadder.  Bean the movie finds the bizarre man-child traveling across the pond, where he’s left in the care of a gallery owner who thinks he’s an art expert.  He’s supposed to add some class to the unveiling of a prestigious acquisition, but of course, he instead makes a thorough disaster of everything he touches.  Gross-out humor, dumb humor, and crude humor abound.  Needless to say, I surfed the Internet whenever PC wasn’t onscreen.

 

Which is most of the movie.  PC plays Gareth, one of the board of directors in the fancy U.K. gallery where Mr. Bean works (it’s his job to make sure no one touches the paintings.)  Rather than send one of their own on this important American assignment, the board agrees to fob Bean off on them, to get him out of their hair for an extended period of time.

 

PC is gone within the first five minutes of the film, never to appear again.  I think he might have only one line.  As such, the only thing I have to say about Gareth is that he looks a good 10-15 years younger than anyone else on the board, which makes him stand out a little.  I’m guessing this is one of those “hey, a man’s gotta eat” roles that it’s a shame PC had to take.

 

All in all, I’d put it on level with seeing the American remake of Death at a Funeral for Peter Dinklage.  I know that The Thick of It has helped PC secure much higher-quality projects in recent years (Accused, The Hour, his previous Whoniverse appearances,) and hopefully his new position as the Doctor will make him so beloved that he can be as choosy as he wants in the future.

 

Accent Watch

 

Scottish.

 

Recommend?

 

In General – No.

 

PC-wise – For completists only.

 

Warnings

 

A little swearing, some drinking and smoking, and sexual references.  Gross-out references to vomiting and laxatives.