An enjoyable slice of nostalgia

Rating: 8/10 (9 April 2009)

This is a big slice of 60s nostalgia. It tells a mildly fictionalised story of the goings on aboard one of the ships which broadcast to the UK from just outside territorial waters in the days when commercial radio was illegal and legitimate radio avoided pop music. The powers that be were consumed with a need to shut these pirate radio stations down, hard though it seems to believe at this distance in time.
This short slice of pirate radio life is seen through the eyes of 18 year old Karl. The film is funny, though somewhat episodic (inevitably, perhaps), and shows both everyday life aboard the vessel (and the sense of camaraderie which builds between those on board) and also a series of events, some unlikely, some less so. This is intercut with the machinations of Government (Kenneth Branagh and Jack Davenport, as pantomime villains) in their attempts to shut the pirates down.
Most of the movie is enjoyable, though some elements are underdeveloped - what was the point of the Christmas dinner at Kenneth Branagh's? - or simply risible - the arrival of the flotilla at the end, for instance. Plus I felt there were far too many atmosphere shots of people clustered round their transistor radios, boogeying happily away. Yes, we did listen to the pirates, but no, I don't think we did it in groups of awe-inspired teenagers. Well, not that much, at any rate.
The DJs are mostly recognisable as types rather than specific caricatures (with the exception of Philip Seymour Hoffman's The Count, an American DJ who is clearly based on Emperor Rosko). The performances are mostly fun: I would draw attention to Nick Frost, who I thought was woefully miscast, and Bill Nighy, who was screamingly funny.
As is far too frequently the case, the film is loaded to overflowing with bad language. With one exception - the sequence where The Count is teasingly threatening to use the F word on air - the language is gratuitous and adds nothing, and I deplore it as being unnecessary.
This film may not appeal too much in the US - viewers may be stupefied at the hidebound attitudes of the 1960s British establishment towards pop music, but the vast quantity of excellent 1960s pop music will certainly help, I suspect - there is one point where the Small Faces' Lazy Sunday leaps into stereo across the cinema auditorium that nearly brought tears to my eyes! The film is long - well over two hours - and essentially fairly trivial, to the extent that the length belies its importance, but I was entertained throughout.