The Parole Officer (2001)

As a British comedy I would rate this as pretty ordinary, just because I hold their comedies up to very high standards and this is only average in that universe. Compared to American comedies, this is probably a solid ten , so I'm averaging it out to an eight.

It's worth watching, because there are a lot of laugh out loud moments, although, at the same time, many of the jokes fall flat. The plot overall is good, while being a bit uneven, but it redeems any failings with some unexpected twists. Some people might not be comfortable watching this movie with children because of a few mildly sexually explicit scenes.

My summary is that I don't regret the time lost to this film, I just think it had a lot more potential.

Fmovies: Steve Coogan is a hero of mine from Paul Calf to Alan Partridge to even Tony Ferrino he is a master of comedy. He has constructed in this film a fantastic premise filled with brilliant set pieces and fabulous 1 lines.

This film is the comedy of the year dont miss it.

5 out of 5

"The Parole Officer" is a funny little comedy gem from the UK that has its share of flaws. Occasionally the jokes are just a bit too silly and the movie has a few lengths in the middle. Also, the score seems completely out of place more often than not.

On the plus side, though, the film has got a great cast. Most jokes work because the actors deliver them with such great timing. Nothing needs to be said about Steve Coogan anymore. Everybody knows his talent by now and the man is rightfully on his way to a career in Hollywood. Ben Miller can be seen here, too, before he came to bigger fame with "The Worst Week Of My Life". He's great, just like Om Puri, George Steven Waddington and Emma Williams, all of which play a group of ex-criminals who plan to break into a bank to steal evidence that will clear the name of the wrong-fully accused title character (played by Coogan). Lena Headey is another face you might recognize from "300" or the new "Terminator" TV-series. She's just gorgeous, beautiful and very charming. Omar Sharif makes a prominent cameo and there's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it appearance by Simon Pegg - probably the best moment of the entire movie.

So, yeah, "The Parole Officer" is a very enjoyable movie. Not all jokes hit the bullseye, but you'll laugh more than a few times. I really recommend this movie to everyone who likes classic Heist flicks and/or comedies like "Fletch".

The Parole Officer fmovies. A great English film, Hilarious! Steve Coogan is not the favourite actor amoungst Uk films but in this case he pulled off a stunning performance, I also enjoyed the series "The Office". But the film was better! This is an extreme example of a hilarious English film. Thick characters, a stupid cowardly hero type of main character, and the big evil guy drinking beer in the background! I love it! Coogan is recognised by me for his silly way to say "Ryyyyyaight".

If you havent already and even if you already have run to the video store now! His passionate way to flirt is pathetic, I loved the way he acted around Women I always laughed my head off. Although on the front cover it says the best British film since The full Monty I know it dont mean this but; The full monty was at least 5x's as good as this so that means That Parole officer was brilliant still but full monty better!

Ive seen Steve Coogan as a sort proper actor now where as the parts he used to play werent acting it was just telling jokes which still caught the public eye but hes a favourite of mine now. John Duigan did a great job, I dont know what expectations he had in mind but for me it worked brilliantly, a real spectacular film, EXCELLENT!!!

This a very enjoyable film and is a great family film as well only if the kids are older than 12. I first watched it on video finding it at a car boot sale. I was defiantly glad i got it because i couldn't stop laughing through out the whole of the film. Since i have had it i have watched it about 8 times and still laugh each time. It has a great cast in it as well, such as Ben Miller, Om Purin, Lena Headey and many more. They all put in great performances that keep the audience laughing thanks to Steve Coogan who wrote the film himself. This a brilliant British comedy and will keep you laughing through out the whole of the film.

Some of the criticism this film has received seems a little unfair. While its concept, plot and characters are not very inventive, the tone of the film works. The humour is often very amusing indeed, and much does amuse in the film. Even the predictable attempts at "Gross-Out" humour work in themselves, if perhaps not in the context of the film.

Questions could be raised about the film's odd mix of styles - the attempts at naturalism and post-modernism, old-fashioned lightweight adventure and Ealing whimsicality - all seem at odds with each other, yet an entertaining film emerges from this. The playing of an impressive cast is sound, with the supporting players, like Om Puri and Ben Miller making the most of limited parts. Stephen Dillane does a steady job as a smug, self-satisfied policeman baddie. I much enjoyed the absurd bit where he laughs maniacally for a while while on TV and the camera zooms into the TV screen Coogan is watching him on. Newcomer Emma Williams is an effective addition to the cast, although she doesn't have all that much to do in plot terms, come to think of it. The finely named Lena Headey is very inoffensive as the "love interest", and thankfully the romance such as it is is light-hearted and made part of the convoluted plot. Perhaps a problem is the excess of characters, a few of whom could be done without. Omar Sharif's cameo was briskly enjoyable, but hardly necessary to the plot, for example. Steve Coogan, so successful on TV with the Alan Partridge character, goes for a more likable, less intricate comic character in this film. He is often excellent, in scenes such as when he does an odd, buffoonish dance in a club. There are plenty of effective little character touches and importantly, one is made to like his character and want him and his "gang" to win out, so to speak, by the end. A film reminiscent of past British Ealing comedies, yet with a fair dose of crudity. In the context of today, this is an impressively funny film, but it does not quite match up to "The Ladykillers" or "The League of Gentlemen", for example. It is slightly overlong, but largely a winning, refreshing minor comedy.