Director: Mike Binder
Starring: Alan Rickman, Janeane Garofalo, Mike Binder
Synopsis: Matthew Barnes is an American corporate dealmaker, transferred to his company's London offices to close a mega deal with a German counterpart. It's the biggest deal of his career, but when he and his wife Linda arrive at London's Heathrow, there's no one there to meet them as planned. They find their credit cards have been maxxed out, and with limited cash and excess baggage, they have to navigate their way around London. After a series of hilarious, seemingly coincidental mix-ups involving an irate Frenchman, an unscrupulous cabbie and a "crazy, horny, sinning nun", they begin to figure out what's happened.
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| The Search For John Gissing (2002) | NA | NA | NA |
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The Search For John Gissing Review
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Review: I went to see this film because of the cast. C'mon, any movie with Alan Rickman, Janeanne Garofalo and Juliet Stevenson with London as the backdrop has to be a good bet. And I sure wasn't disappointed, this is one funny movie.
Alan Rickman gives a marvelously deadpan performance as the larger than life John Gissing, a man coming rapidly unglued at the thought of being replaced by Barnes after 15 years on the job. And even though he’s clearly only a stiff upper lip away from having a nervous breakdown we still somehow like him enough to cheer him on when he finally exacts revenge on neurotic company chairman Francois Fuller, played by Allan Corduner.
Binder, playing Barnes, is the smart, hardworking company man who naively believes that he'll get ahead by not making waves and doing a good job. With dogged persistence he builds his team of screwball supporting characters to assist him in closing the deal and gaining the support of his brown-nosing boss played by Juliet Stevenson. Binder, who wrote and directed the film, is appearing in "Minority Report" directed by Steven Spielberg and also writes and directs the HBO series "The Mind of The Married Man".
Jane Garofalo plays Barnes' lively and loud-mouthed American wife, Linda with gusto. Both Garofalo and Binder work the US comedy circuits and easily banter the snappy husband and wife dialogue back and forth with perfect timing, alternating affectionate moments with ones where they bicker and try not to 'get pissy' with each other.
Overall it's a light hearted and hilarious look at cultural stereotypes, and those who choose to unquestioningly sacrifice their lives to the corporate slog. If you enjoy British comedy you won't want to miss this absurd send up of corporate politics.
4 out of 5.
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Copyright© Written By: Caroline Avery
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