Johnny English Strikes Again Review

Have you ever wondered what James Bond would be like if he was an incompetent idiot? That is what you get with the Johnny English series. Rowan Atkinson makes his third appearance as the inept spy in Johnny English Strikes Again.

MI7 and Britain face their greatest threat when a hacker reveals the names and aliases of their active agents. With everyone exposed MI7 have to turn to Johnny English who has retired to become a geography teacher. Johnny acts as an old-school spy in a digital world as he tracks down the hacker whilst Britain suffers from more cyber attacks. In Britain a desperate Prime Minister (Emma Thompson) seeks to make a deal with a young and charismatic Silicon Valley billionaire, Jason Volta (Jake Lacy).

Johnny English is hardly a series that is held in high regard, yet there is clearly an audience for them since there have been three over the course of 15 years. It is a family-friendly comedy that has a broad appeal and Rowan Atkinson is a big draw, especially his physical brand of performing. However, he is getting too old for this type of physical comedy.

The Johnny English films are formulaic – Johnny English is a spy who thinks he is a lot smarter and capable than he really is. There are repeated plot points like a finding out that a respected figure is not to be trusted but dismissed by his superiors and ends up getting kicked out of the service but still goes on a climatic mission. Johnny English Strikes Again even has a similar set-up where Johnny English is no longer a spy and called back into action by MI7.

Johnny English has had a close connection to the Bond franchise. The first film was written by Neal Purvis and Robert Wade, the main writers of the Bond films since The World is Not Enough, the second film parodied the parkour chase in Casino Royale and Atkinson confessed that Johnny English Strikes Again has the same set-up as Skyfall where a hacker attacks MI6 and exposes their spies. The finales of both films takes place in Scotland.

A theme in Skyfall is Bond – an old-fashioned spy in a modern world and that the aim of the film was to prove the character was still relevant. Johnny English Strikes Again has a comedic twist on this theme – Johnny rejects the modern gadgets and cars, opting for items based on sweets, a pistol and drives an Aston Martin and of course, there is a comedic twist to them.

Some scenes are more direct parodies of moments from the Bond franchise like the VR scene from Die Another Day, the drink’s order in Casino Royale, and when Bond gave a lady a flying lesson in Live and Let Die. Johnny English Strikes Again even ventures into parodying other spy franchises – the magnetic boots were like Gecko Gloves in Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol and the villain in the third Johnny English is a seemingly benevolent tech-billionaire, like Richmond Valentine in Kingsman: The Service Secret. Johnny’s new profession as a teacher could be a reference to Jim Prideaux in Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy.

Johnny English Strikes Again is also a post-Brexit tale where Britain is seen as a laughing stock on the world stage. Emma Thompson is clearly a send-up of Theresa May, an overly stress woman fighting off crisis after crisis and can only get to sleep through alcohol and pills. Jason Volta is meant to be a parody of Mark Zuckerberg and Steve Jobs but as one commentator on Mark Kermode’s review mentioned Britain shouldn’t become dependent on unhinged billionaires.

When it comes to comedy Johnny English Strikes Again is painfully laboured. Jokes are telegraphed way in advance – a character would introduce an item which is basically the film saying this will be important later. It reduces the impact of the joke. The film was at its most inventive at the beginning when Johnny secretly teaches a group of young children various spy techniques – a concept that could work as a CBBC comedy show.

There are some passable moments like when Johnny is in a nightclub and Johnny’s VR carnage across London. Plus Thompson gives her all for the role that was really just a paycheque for her. But the Johnny English series paddles in a pool of mediocrity and Johnny English Strikes Again is no different.