The Boat that Rocked

This boat really did rock

Director: Richard Curtis
Writers: Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner, Hilary Bevan Jones
Released: 2009
Starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bill Nighy, Rhys Ifans, Nick Frost, Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson
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If you love groovylicious music and cool fashion from the 1960s, then you are going to LOVE this film!

It’s a film about the pirate radio stars during the sixties who played rockin’ music, whilst trying to keep the government off their backs who didn’t like the kind of influence the radio stations had.

It’s the kind of film where its characters are used to target the typical main-stream movie audience who are in their twenties, but it’s ‘historical’ enough to capture the reminiscing kids of the sixties, yet, unique enough to entice the indie teens, and overall AWESOMENESS to be absolutely: Way. Cool.

It’s an exciting film about each radio host’s personal triumphs as well as the overall capturing story of essentially giving the middle finger to society. The contrast between the conservative government workers versus the wild rock and roll supporters from the boats in the North Sea was drawn which was great to see two sides.

You can also see the same sort of contrast being drawn between the children and their parents. The children being the rebellious worshippers of the DJs who hide radios in their bedrooms, and the parents being the BBC listeners who frown upon the culture of pop and rock and roll music.

The humour was a bit hit-and-miss for me occasionally, but that’s probably because I have a dry sense of humour… As in, I find Napoleon Dynamite hilarious. The majority of the audience would enjoy it very much, I’m sure.

Fantastic music OBVIOUSLY, which compelled me to buy the double-disc album which was incredible! Think of your favourite artist from the sixties, and it’ll be on there… Except for The Beatles… That was a bit of a disappointment, actually…

A loud, crazy, colourful and hilarious depiction of the sixties’ uprising which was almost successful. I felt quite upset at the end when I saw the ship sink and I went into a deep daydream of how the Government should have let the ships be, how it could have been, how they should never have made laws against them and how spectacular the sixties was… and the WAY COOL music… The ending was a bit of a downer, but accurate nevertheless. (Reinforcing my ‘Golden Age Thinking’ as explained in Midnight in Paris)

The Boat That Rocked is an entertaining film where anybody could pick out a favourite bit, moment or character, making it a movie that’s easy to talk about.  It is a perfectly orchestrated story with fewer stereotypes than I expected.

The wardrobe was absolutely stupendous (I wish there was a “The Boat That Rocked Shop”) and the cut-aways to the everyday listeners was probably one of my favourite bits, because it gave you a huge scope of the world they lived in – since it could have been very isolated to the life on the boat.

This isn’t just a film worth watching, this is a film worth buying and then replaying. You will finish watching the film and feel an urge to carry a stereo around with you, liberating the boring and monotonous people of the 2000s with epic sounds of the sixties.

You will feel the need to stick it to the man and be rebellious… But you’ll probably just put the film on repeat instead, and that’s cool too.

If American Graffiti represents America in the 60s, The Boat that Rocked represents the UK in the 60s.

Jodie’s rating: 8/10