Mindhorn (2016) [review]
Mindhorn (2016) [review]
A seriously silly tale from the Isle of Man
Quick Review
Great film.
A movie which never misses the mark. Acting, script and location are perfect. This is one of my go-to movies when life gets that little less bearable.
An out of shape, balding, down on his luck actor is fading away in a run down London flat. After a brief recap of his fall from grace, we find Richard Thorncroft (Mindhorn) summoned to the Isle of Man by the local constabulary. Mission; to reprise the role of his one time success in order track down a real-life deranged murderer. Mindhorn is back.
Of course Thorncroft cares little about the killer. His true intentions are to generate some interest in his brand while rekindling the love of an ex-wife/co-host. Unfortunately, she’s re-married with a kid. As the plot thickens and a doorway to stardom opens, we learn everything is not quite as it appears. The story is formulaic in structure but not content. There are twists aplenty and lots of jokes you’ll only appreciate if paying close attention.
Other characters include Clyde, the ex-wife’s new partner and former stuntman of Thorncroft. We have a police chief, bitter over a scornful decade old comment made by Thorncroft. The Kestrel; fictional nemesis of Mindhorn, manifested in the body of a mid-30’s murderer with the mind of a 9 year old. There’s a fellow actor, once second fiddle to Thorncroft, who has gone on to greater things. Thorncroft’s old agent is still on the island, though he’s landed on equally hard times. Every performance in ‘Mindhorn’ is impeccable.
The film doesn’t take itself seriously, but thankfully doesn’t fall in to American levels of idiocy. This isn’t some loud-mouthed humourless, ironic Will Ferrell dumpster fire. It’s not tiresome and boring like Seinfeld or plastered with SNL clownishness. ‘Mindhorn’ isn’t a laugh-out-loud comedy, but a movie shouldn’t be. Story first.
If you want to roll on the floor laughing, go watch some stand-up comedy. A movie centered around a few cheap laughs loses its appeal after a couple of watches. This film has equal amounts of action, drama and humour. All expertly paced and intertwined by a clearly talented production crew.
Cheesy, lame, stupid. A fantastic watch to be enjoyed time and again.
Brought to you by ‘Tumpers’, the man girdle system for men.
Overview
Genre(s): Comedy, Action
Location(s): Isle of Man
Writer(s): Julian Barratt, Simon Farnaby
Director(s): Sean Foley
Main Actor(s):
‘Julian Barratt’ as ‘Richard Thorncroft’ (Mindhorn)
‘Essie Davis’ as ‘Patricia Deville’
‘Russell Tovey’ as ‘Paul Melly’ (The Kestrel)
‘Andrea Riseborough’ as ‘DS Elena Baines’
‘Richard McCabe’ as ‘Jeffrey Moncrieff’
‘Simon Farnaby’ as ‘Clive Parnevik’
Official Synopsis:
“Washed-up Richard Thorncroft (Julian Barratt) peaked with hit 1980s detective show Mindhorn, playing the titular Isle of Man sleuth with a robotic eye that allowed him to literally "see the truth". Decades later, when a deranged Manx criminal demands Mindhorn as his nemesis. Thorncroft returns to the scene of his greatest triumph for one last chance to reignite his glory days, professional credibility and even romance with former co-star/paramour Patricia Deville (Essie Davis).”
Box Art:
In More Detail (no major spoilers)
No major spoilers here, but film structure and plot is analysed in detail. If in doubt, just watch the film.
I would happily cover the entire film here, however there are 2 major plot points which would ruin the enjoyment of new viewers. So not much past the initial contact with The Kestrel can be discussed.
The fictional ‘Mindhorn’ series is a parody of 70’s and 80’s sci-fi. Terrible plot, overacted, cheap effects and clichéd with an impractical sports car. The character, who would become Mindhorn, was a British special forces agent captured on the Russian border. USSR scientists removed one of his eyes and replaced it with a prosthetic lie detector “Meaning he could literally see the truth”. It would have been an awesome show!
Mindhorn’s co-star and on-screen and off-screen lover, is Patricia Deville, played by Essie Davis. Since the ‘Mindhorn’ series ended, she’s become an established journalist for Manx Television. She comes across as somewhat bored in this role. When Thorncroft appears out of nowhere, she soon brightens up. Although a lingering bitterness remains as to how the pair parted decades ago.
Simon Farnaby plays Clive Parnevik, Mindhorn’s old stuntman. These days Clive appears to be either retired or taking life one day at a time. Having a damn good time either way since he’s living with Patricia. Are they married? Gardener? Handyman? I couldn’t figure that out. They have a teenage kid named Jamine, who gets a decent amount of screen time, but who’s the real father?
I think Clive was intended to be an unlikeable character. I felt little sorry for him. While filming ‘Mindhorn’ there was some clear resentment towards Thorncraft, jealous of his relationship with Patricia. Clive had nothing to do with their breakup.
As soon as Thorncroft returns, it’s apparent there’s still a connection between the ex-couple. Is Clive better than Thorncroft? He’s in better shape, for whatever that’s worth. As far as I can fathom, hiding some ‘Mindhorn’ fan mail is the worst atrocity Clive commits. Doesn’t warrant the hatred he receives. This is called ‘overanalysing’.
The Kestrel stands out s a brilliantly portrayed character. His costume, mannerisms and secret lair could not be improved upon. The Plasticine props were a particular favourite. Why would someone make a phone out of rubbery dough? It falls apart with the slightest of pressure. There are plenty of real phones which could be altered to match the design of ‘Mindhorn’. It’s dumb right?
Wrong, it’s genius. The character is in their 30’s yet, according to a subtly placed news report, has the mind of a 9 year old. This is the mentality of a child. One of many situations which could be brushed off as a cheap visual gag, appreciated more upon dissection.
Refresher; I am not a fan of Steve ‘The Cunt’ Coogan. It’s definitely personal. Watch the movie ‘Greed’ (2019). That is what finally swayed me away from him. Pay attention to the ending then look at the details of one of his houses. Hypocrite. Like every other Hollywank sellout. He’s not in the movie much, so his better than thou grimace didn’t ruin the experience for me.
Coogan’s performance in Mindhorn isn’t offensive in context. If it were any other actor I’d probably have more interest in critiquing the appearance. Especially when a woman gets apologetically punched in the face. His depiction of the actor who played Mindhorn’s assistant Windjammer, is how I envision Coogan in real life; ever since he whined in an interview about the privacy of actors. Man up you Hollywank coke head. The legend that is Rik Mayall always made time for his fans and never complained about invasion of the press. Likely because he had nothing to hide.
Casting is excellent and must have drained an intimidating amount of the budget. Actors and set designers make movies, not computer graphics. Other notable appearances include cameos from Simon Callow and Kenneth Branagh. You may not recognise the names, you may recognise the faces, I doubt you can name many of their movies!
There are occasional jokes and visual gags which fall flat. Richard McCabe plays Mindhorn’s old agent, Jeffrey Moncrieff. He has to pull off a bumbling, desperate idiot. Which he does well, it’s a tough one to perform without coming off as juvenile. Nearing the end, there’s conflict between him and Thorncroft in a caravan/office.
The scene culminates in Moncrieff pointing to a sex doll and proclaiming the plastic whore to be his secretary. There are ways it could have been funny, this was not one of them. Minor niggle in a near perfect film. But if you don’t criticise something then people think you’re a shill. Like I care.
For a small island most people couldn’t find on a map, the sure are a lot of places to visit. There’s the police station, country estates, ferry terminal, cave system, beaches, the abandoned mines and some sort of large milling facility. Being based almost entirely on the island is a great plot device.
The killer can’t leave because all transport links would be monitored. Therefor they have to… do something! It’s infuriating watching clueless movies where characters travel across a major city within 15 minutes. In London it takes 15 minutes just to pull out on to a main road. The Isle of Man isn’t a location I would have chosen, but it’s perfect.
‘Mindhorn’ is rated 15+. Don’t know whether I’m sufficiently desensitised or am lacking moral integrity, but that number seems excessive. There are penis drawings, a topless man, minor amounts of coarse language and a tiny bit of violence. I would put it in a 13+ bracket. I’ve seen far worse degeneracy and social brainwashing from recent PG Disney movies.
There is a lot more I want to talk about but it’s not why I do this. I’m here to put forth reasons to watch thongs, describe scenes which may be of interest and give an overall feel for the movie. Trailers are more miss-than-hit these days. They contain major spoilers, all the jokes, every action scene, all out sequence and context. They ruin the movie. I try not to, however it leaves little to write about other than an overall opinion.
I’ve barely scratched the surface with ‘Mindhorn’. Hopefully it’s enough to convince people to at least give it a try. I can’t imagine why people wouldn’t enjoy this for at least half a dozen viewings.