Pirate Radio

My first film review as brought to you by Leonard Maltin's 2011 Movie Guide is "Pirate Radio" or "The Boat That Rocked" as it's known in the UK.  Directed by Richard Curtis and starring Phillip Seymour Hoffman with a wide array of British actors, this film is about a radio ship in the 60's broadcasting rock music to households when the playing of this music on the airwaves  was illegal.  With the British government taking notice of these pirate radio stations, they have passed a law that will shut down the boats forever.  Fighting to stay on board, the crew does whatever they can to keep the ship afloat and stay on the air.  That's pretty much all this film has to offer as far as the plot goes.  Not much else there.  However, there are many excellent performances, especially from the likes of Hoffman, Bill Nighy and (one of my favorite Brits) Nick Frost.  These actors give some excellent comedic performances, but the true star of the film is the soundtrack.  Consisting of hit after hit from the  60's, the soundtrack pulls you into the film regardless of the lackluster story.  This major aspect of the film let me thoroughly enjoy the film and give this 3 out of a possible 4 stars.