Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Action man
BOUNTY HUNTERS
COMEDIAN Jack Whitehall was obviously keen to break away from his usual role of playing the posh idiot – and he’s written himself a character as an action hero.
He and Bad Education writing pal Freddy Syborn have penned this comedy caper, which Jack says is a homage to 80s movies like Lethal Weapon.
And like all good buddy action thrillers, Jack needs a partner in crime – enter Rosie Perez (yes, actual Oscar-nominated Hollywood actress Rosie).
She plays the gum-chewing, ball-busting, gun-toting New York bounty hunter Nina Morales.
Meanwhile, Jack begins in rather predictable manner, as a posh Cambridge University student with no street smarts, but impeccable manners, who drives a tiny electric G-wiz car and lives in Wimbledon.
We’ve seen this before, but don’t worry, Barnaby’s quiet life is about to spiral out of control, giving Jack a chance to do a few stunts and car chases (albeit at about 14mph) while pretending he’s Mel Gibson.
It begins when Barnaby’s dad (Robert Lindsay) ends up in hospital after mysteriously falling out of a window. Then, as Barnaby tries to save the family’s cash-strapped business, a dodgy deal masterminded by his dad leaves him £50,000 down and in the possession of looted treasure from Syria.
“You’re in charge of the shop for a week and you end up crowdfunding ISIS,” exclaims his wild sister Leah (Charity Wakefield).
Fortunately, his sis bumped into Nina while travelling (that’s another story) and they decide to hire her.
And so we have the classic chalk and cheese partnership – Nina is wanted by a dangerous Mexican drug cartel, while he’s doing a PHD in Flemish textiles.
You’ll need to give this a chance, but once it all gets going, it’s a funny, action-packed romp.