Mr. Bean's Holiday

Mr Bean should stick to TV, movies don’t suit him. A TV show can work with a series of funny scenes, but a film needs a story, and therein lies the problem. Half of the humour relies solely on Atkinson making faces, and from the other half only very little is truly funny. Disappointment, 40% (11/17/2007)

I'm really sorry that such a brilliant character ends their journey in a failed mess, the only happiness of which is that Bean doesn't speak too often, otherwise things would have turned out even worse. There is a difference between when Curtis and Atkinson take care of each shot and intertwine the script with clever and well-planned sketches, and when they attach proven, but more bitter grimaces to silly family troubles in this use. Rowan's rubber face still has a lot to offer even after so many years, and when we get a new gag, it's worth it, and while watching it at the speaker or escaping on a motorcycle, I went back many years ago when I saw this perfect fool for the first time. I will keep playing those episodes, but I won't watch as the script turns the perfectly chattered character into an almost sickly behaving individual anymore. (08/06/2007)

Mr. Bean works best in short sketches - I wrote that about Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie as well - but while I found the American adventure quite entertaining, Mr. Bean's Holiday in Europe hardly appealed to me at all. At some points, Bean's bad luck and ineptitude even annoyed me, and I felt like they relied on a proven brand (Mr. Bean) and forgot to take care of the comedy. The screening of Willem Dafoe's self-absorbed film with Bean's interludes was hilarious, but by the final set-piece on the beach, the smile had passed and all that came out of my mouth was an incomprehensible "wtf?!". (09/29/2023)

So it's still Mr. Bean, surprisingly too much - he doesn't try to talk much, he's just that grotesque character again who gets himself into funny situations. This time, he ends up being accused of kidnapping a boy, whose father, by the way, is Karel Roden. It's not a big movie, but you will enjoy this trip through France for one viewing. It's a shame that the setting isn't utilized even more. (03/07/2014)