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PIRATE RADIOMovie Reviews
Romantic comedy set in the 1960s about a group of pirate-radio DJs who work on a busted-down boat on the English Channel to duck the British government. Cast:Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bill Nighy, Rhys Ifans, Nick Frost, Kenneth BranaghDirector:Richard CurtisRelease Date:November 13, 2009DVD Release:April 13, 2010From:Focus FeaturesRating:RLength:1 hr 56 min
Pirate Radio played to good not great reviews. Reviews were mixed. • Steve Persall wrote in the St. Petersburg Times, "...there's always an irresistible song playing, or noses thumbed at convention keeping it interesting. This isn't a great movie but you can surely dance to it." • And Shawn Levy wrote in the Portland Oregonian, "...that exceedingly rare film that never, but never puts a foot right." More Reviews Below...
Pirate Radio Positive Reviews (37 Reviews, reviews below)
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: GOOD(cg) "...about as rock-revolutionary as a tea break. But the choppy production floats on a great soundtrack and is buoyed by an inviting cast."(See all of Lisa Schwarzbaum's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 300 words, 11/13/09
David Germain, Associated Press: MODERATE(cg) "The experiences and credos of these maritime rockers are about as inspiring as the pranks and prattlings of a third-rate college radio station."(See all of David Germain's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 692 words, 11/12/09
Thelma Adams, Us Weekly: VERY GOOD(cg) "While director Richard Curtis' enjoyable, music-filled ensemble comedy stars Philip Seymour Hoffman and hottie Tom Sturridge, it's as choppy as the sea."(See all of Thelma Adams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 70 words, 11/12/09
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (11 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Stuffed with playful character actors and carpeted with wall-to-wall tunes... makes for easy viewing and easier listening..."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 679 words, 11/13/09
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "It's all got a great backbeat and you can dance to it, but there isn't much to Curtis's rebels except some canned anti-authoritarian, sex-drugs-rock 'n' roll rants."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 416 words, 11/13/09
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "...has a real feel for the shipboard combination of excitement and desperation.... It's the Swinging '60s, but the only woman on board is a lesbian. Nobody is swinging..."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 754 words, 11/12/09
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times/Chicago Tribune: EXCELLENT "...may be the coolest music-video masquerading as a movie ever. Don't even bother resisting the urge to join in -- but quietly, please."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 881 words, 11/13/09
Kyle Smith, New York Post: VERY GOOD(cg) "...the finest rock movie since 'Almost Famous,' which presented rock as a sort of exclusive club with initiation rituals and furious ejections."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 503 words, 11/13/09
Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Branagh hams it up as a music-hating politician, but he's a token villain. 'Pirate Radio' would rather just keep the drinks flowing and the vinyl spinning."(See all of Rafer Guzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 253 words, 11/13/09
Liam Lacey, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE(cg) "Curtis's script is essentially an American frat-boy comedy with a series of vignettes showing games and ribaldry, virginity to be lost and pompous squares to offend."(See all of Liam Lacey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 531 words, 11/13/09
Robert Wilonsky, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "The sex is polite, and there's not a whiff of dope. Only the music endures; not even so powerful a man as Richard Curtis can outmuscle rock 'n' roll."(See all of Robert Wilonsky's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 239 words, 11/11/09
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "It's not an unpleasant experience, really. The soundtrack is terrific... [but] by the time it wheezes into its overdrawn, overblown ending, you'll have long since tuned out."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 221 words, 11/12/09
Mick LaSalle, Houston Chronicle/San Francisco Chronicle: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...the sun always shines, the music is great and the sex is available, guilt-free and glorious.... Curtis, who wrote and directed, keeps the spirit fresh and anarchic."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 713 words, 11/13/09
Rick Bentley, Dallas Morning News: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...has the energetic pop of a Mick Jagger dance move, the infectious nature of a Jimi Hendrix guitar riff and the entertainment value of the entire Beach Boys catalog."(See all of Rick Bentley's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 411 words, 11/13/09
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a rowdy, mostly hilarious British comedy-drama about the offshore radio stations that blared rock 'n' roll to a desperate young UK audience in the 1960s..."(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 757 words, 11/13/09
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: WEAK(cg) "Despite some juicy history and a hit-filled playlist, the Swinging '60s comedy fails to find the right wavelength.... a painful little mistake of a movie."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 571 words, 11/13/09
Tom Keogh, Seattle Times: POOR(cg) "...waiting for something inspiring or interesting to happen -- something, perhaps, to do with fighting for the music these people supposedly care about -- is fruitless."(See all of Tom Keogh's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 417 words, 11/13/09
Shawn Levy, Portland Oregonian: POOR(cg) "Witless, tasteless, toothless, pointless, garish, repetitive, obvious, and painfully dull... that exceedingly rare film that never, but never puts a foot right."(See all of Shawn Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 445 words, 11/13/09
Joe Williams, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Even as it spirals into disaster-flick absurdity, 'Pirate Radio' isn't trying to cause a big sensation, it's just peddling instant gratification."(See all of Joe Williams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 330 words, 11/13/09
Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "...there's always an irresistible song playing, or noses thumbed at convention, keeping it interesting. This isn't a great movie but you can surely dance to it."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 568 words, 11/12/09
Robert Wilonsky, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "The sex is polite, and there's not a whiff of dope. Only the music endures; not even so powerful a man as Richard Curtis can outmuscle rock 'n' roll."(See all of Robert Wilonsky's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 239 words, 11/11/09
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...with blasts of Brit rock from the Beatles and the Stones to Dusty Springfield and David Bowie... the ship is unsinkable."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 214 words, 11/13/09
Mike Miliard, Boston Phoenix: VERY GOOD(cg) "Despite the rather preposterous length (two full hours; the first cut is reported to have been three!), 'Pirate Radio' is a ribald, rocking romp."(See all of Mike Miliard's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 639 words, 11/12/09
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "It's not an unpleasant experience, really. The soundtrack is terrific... [but] by the time it wheezes into its overdrawn, overblown ending, you'll have long since tuned out."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 221 words, 11/12/09
HIGHBROW PRESS (3 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Stuffed with playful character actors and carpeted with wall-to-wall tunes... makes for easy viewing and easier listening..."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 679 words, 11/13/09
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...recalls but seldom approaches the elegant anarchy of Richard Lester's Beatles films. Some comic bits work beautifully... others work haltingly, or not at all."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 403 words, 11/13/09
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: EXCELLENT "...may be the coolest music-video masquerading as a movie ever. Don't even bother resisting the urge to join in -- but quietly, please."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 881 words, 11/13/09
MOVIE INDUSTRY (5 Reviews)
Derek Elley, Daily Variety: MODERATE "...isn't quite the timely, anti-establishment comedy it promises to be... but it's as close as any comedy by a middle-class entertainer like Curtis is likely to come."(See all of Derek Elley's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,101 words, 03/30/09
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: EXCELLENT "...may be the coolest music-video masquerading as a movie ever. Don't even bother resisting the urge to join in -- but quietly, please."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 881 words, 11/13/09
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Stuffed with playful character actors and carpeted with wall-to-wall tunes... makes for easy viewing and easier listening..."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 679 words, 11/13/09
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...recalls but seldom approaches the elegant anarchy of Richard Lester's Beatles films. Some comic bits work beautifully... others work haltingly, or not at all."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 403 words, 11/13/09
21.5 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Pirate Radio's reviews are separated by an average 21.5 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Pirate Radio (37 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Pirate Radio's reviews cover 59.7% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 18,248 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 493 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Pirate Radio Coverage, Volume & Length (37 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 24.5 Hours Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Pirate Radio's reviews on average broke 24.5 hours before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Pirate Radio's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Pirate Radio (37 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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