Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.0
Overall		4.0

Johnny English Strikes Again Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Martin Liebman January 24, 2019

The fate of England’s most secretive spy service is in the hands of a bumbling retiree in Johnny English Strikes Again, Director David Kerr's debut feature film. The picture is the third in the Johnny English series, following Johnny English and Johnny English Reborn. The franchise is both a spoof on James Bond and, more importantly, a vehicle for Rowan Atkinson to harness is considerable comedic might. The series is certainly nowhere near as good as his breakthrough Mr. Bean, though these films follow the same basic formula featuring Atkinson bumbling about and inadvertently making a mess of everything he does and everywhere he goes. Johnny English Strikes Again sees the character pulled out of retirement and into the modern world. Hilarity ensues as the analog agent must dabble in a digital world.

Britain has been hacked. The identity of its undercover agents have been exposed, and the Prime Minister (Emma Thompson) orders older, retired agents to be brought back into the fold to expose, and nail, the person, or persons, responsible. Unfortunately most of the retired agents are too old and frail for active duty. Four, including Johnny English (Rowan Atkinson), are reactivated. English accidentally incapacitates the other three, leaving the fate of the free world in his hands. Teaming up with his friend Angus Bough (Ben Miller), English sets out to defeat a digitally savvy foe with his old school gadgets and gizmos and, of course, his brain. As more and more digital attacks hit the country, English meets the beautiful Ophelia (Olga Kurylenko), whose good looks and grace may be clouding his judgment. Meanwhile, with English stumbling about his mission, the Prime Minster is left with no choice but to trust an American digital entrepreneur named Jason Volta (Jake Lacy) who promises her an end to her country's crippling hacks.

When English is called back to duty, he finds himself immersed in an MI7 he barely recognizes. Guns are a thing of the past (deemed too dangerous), phones and twitter handles are the future, and Hyundai hybrids have replaced the gas-guzzling muscle cars of yore. The film’s “theme,” if it really has one, revolves around English’s rejection of modern technology, preferring classic spy gear, old cars, and he even winds up in a suit of armor: talk about a blast to the past! The film has fun with his rejection of, but occasional forced integration with, modern technology. In the film’s most hilarious sequence, he dons a VR headset and explores a virtual world while, unbeknownst to him, he maneuvers through the real world and inadvertently beats down people and destroys objects he presumes to be part of the simulation.

Much of the humor stems from English believing he’s good at what he does, and perhaps more humorously, others somehow believing he’s good at what he does, at least to a point. The double-down on his agent skills ultimately allows him to stumble his way to various, accidental successes, but not without leaving a swath of destruction in his wake. And Atkinson soaks up every opportunity like a sponge. He is the master of off the wall physical buffoonery, and the film earns many of its laughs when English makes use of various gadgets that he doesn’t necessarily misuse, but uses to unexpectedly more intense and dangerous results. He burns down a restaurant, accidentally takes an upper, and manages to retrieve the wrong evidence. The film’s story is of little concern, but the filmmakers do blend Atkinson’s antics into it, creating an enjoyably seamless, for the most part, comical adventure with the fate of the modern digital world in his incapable hands.

Johnny English Strikes Again Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Universal's Blu-ray release of Johnny English Strikes Again is of a very high quality. The digitally sourced picture is sharp corner to corner throughout, with finely revealing details and smooth, clear definition the norm. Character close-ups reveal rewarding skin details, showcasing pores, lines, eyes, and hair with very impressive depth and clarity. Clothing details are precise, particularly critical given the number of high dollar suits and dresses seen throughout the film. Fine fabric definition and stitching details are always intimately visible. Environments are sharp, with practical sets, of course, the highlight, though some digitally constructed backdrops are a little flat. Colors are bold and intense. English's red Astin Martin is a particularly robust standout, but coloring proves even, dense, and well saturated throughout various interior and exterior locations alike. Flesh tones are well defined throughout but black levels are a little problematic, particularly in an early nighttime scene in which English is evaluating his pupils. Blacks are raised and push purple. Aliasing interferes in a few places, such as on a blue shirt at the 10:30 mark, while severe banding at the 22:45, 26:13, and 1:15:21 timestamps are also troublesome. On the whole, though, the image is gorgeous, with effortlessly complex detail, high end clarity, and bold and accurate colors the norm.

Johnny English Strikes Again Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Johnny English Strikes Again strikes audio gold via its excellent DTS:X Master Audio soundtrack. Music is joyfully wide and filling, with seemingly equal status given to fronts, surrounds, and top layer speakers alike, including a prodigiously delivered Dance song in chapter 10 which is the absolute sonic highlight throughout the entire film for its depth, detail, and total stage transformation into that dance floor. High yield action details are well defined and perfectly integrated into the stage, taking full advantage of every speaker in the DTS:X arsenal. Well balanced atmospherics at a posh restaurant where English poses as a waiter in chapter four offers an example of the track's ability to finely hone less prominent support elements with the same elegance as the more intense music and effects. A "slight pop," as English calls it, in chapter six offers a momentary but weighty low end charge and is one of the best one-off examples of low end extension in the track. Dialogue delivery is clear and center focused. It is always well prioritized.

Johnny English Strikes Again Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Johnny English Strikes Again contains a handful of featurettes and an audio commentary track. A DVD copy of the film and a Movies Anywhere digital copy code are included with purchase. This release ships with an embossed slipcover.

• The Comedy Genius of Rowan Atkinson (1080p, 4:58): Cast and crew praise the actor's verbal and physical comedic genius and work on the set. Atkinson himself discusses his career and work ethic.
• A Cast of Characters (1080p, 7:12): This piece focuses on the importance of the actors playing off of Atkinson. It covers their personal and professional relationships and the qualities the key cast brought to the film.
• The Johnny English Legacy (1080p, 5:06): A look back at the character and stories from throughout the series.
• Virtual Reality Johnny English Style (1080p, 4:14): A closer look at making the film's most hilarious sequence.
• The Gadgets (1080p, 6:08): An exploration of the high tech and low tech doodads that play a part in the film.
• The Cars (1080p, 5:07): A quick exploration of both the cars that appear in the film and the automobile stunt sequences in which they participate.
• Locations and Design (1080p, 4:03): This supplement's highlight explores the differences between making the first film in 2003 and this film in 2018. It also, as the title suggests, explores shooting locations and set construction.
• Audio Commentary: Director David Kerr delivers a well-spoken breakdown of the film, covering many of the highlights from the pieces above but also expanding on various ideas of story, humor, acting, technical details, and more.

Johnny English Strikes Again Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Johnny English Strikes Again delivers regular laughs, which is all one can reasonably want or expect from a movie like this. The story is paper-thin, granted, but it's well thought out in terms of allowing Atkinson to play around with a fully realized buffoon of a persona that is the star of the show, not the framework plot details. This is a fun, mostly family-friendly Comedy that may be far removed from Atkinson's glory days as Mr. Bean but is still a showcase for his considerable comedic talents. Universal's Blu-ray delivers strong 1080p video, a terrific DTS:X soundtrack, and a nice selection of bonus content. Recommended.