David Brent: Life on the Road (2016) - Film Review

An Entertainer Third.

Picking up ten years after where The Office (UK) left off, a documentary crew return to film David Brent's latest escapade - going on tour with a disgruntled band and aspiring young rapper.

He may have grown a decade older, but Brent is just as crazy, clueless and inappropriate as ever and this time, the cameras are solely on him. For fans of The Office, this feels like the perfect epilogue we never knew we needed to tie up David's story. However, for those new to the character, I can see why this film may not appeal.

David is still working as a salesman, this time for a washing products company as a rep. The environment somehow seems even more hostile towards David than Wernham Hogg, as here he is just another worker and possesses few friends, aside from Nigel who is practically his soul-mate. Gradually, we learn that others care about David, including Karen and particularly Pauline, who in fact has a crush on the aloof ex-boss. More on that later however.

From here, David goes on to fund and perform in a tragic series of gigs with his hired band, Foregone Conclusion Mark II. The band are young and ignorant and care little for David or his antics. Thus ensues a tour on which David is repeatedly ignored by his band and staff, whilst performing unpopular songs with offensive lyrics and slipping deeper into depression and exasperation. I actually sympathised with David an incredible amount throughout the movie, as the dreamer is clearly looking to try anything to reach the heights of fame he once tasted, but is unable to do so ultimately. The film gets to quite a dark point, where Brent is simply broken and depressed, friendless and alone. I worried for a time, kowing Gervais' sense of humour and the nature of The Office, whether there would be any kind of happy ending to lift the viewer out of the sympathy they feel for David. Thankfully, there was!

The ending is brilliant, because it plays things safe and realistic, whilst also pushing a sense of hope and introducing a number of small but meaningful silver linings. The sound check guy, Dan, finally decides to support David right at the end of the tour, purchasing fake snow to make the experience match David's ridiculous vision of greatness. It's a beautiful moment, which is reinforced with the band praising Brent and admitting they enjoyed themselves, before it is revealed that the whole group voluntarily joined David at the bar to enjoy a drink and a chat after the final show, something the lead singer had yearned for from the start (and even paid for previously). The icing on the cake is seeing how happy the man is, despite the failure of the tour. He expressed that he never expected to make it, he only wanted to try. We then see him return to his new workplace to little fanfare, only to be lifted by Pauline throwing a drink over Jeremy and defending David as the former bullies him. The great final shot then sees David wander off to have a coffee with Pauline, who grasps his hand in hers in the final second of the film.It's a great ending to a character many have learned to love over the years.

I understand the flaws within this movie nonetheless. Sometimes it feels a bit slow, with pacing issues being the worst of the film's offences. The awkward moments are thankfully mostly cut short by humour and laughter, which was a progression the show also adopted as it progressed in its production. In fact, there are a LOT of funny moments in this film which really made me laugh out loud, particularly listening to the lyrics of David's songs (which ironically, were actually pretty easy on the ears. In face some of them are catchy, especially Dom Johnson's amazing rap near the end. I like it that much I'm not ashamed to say it's found its way into m Spotify playlist!

Overall, this film is a fun and hilarious outing for one of televisions most beloved characters. Although I always hope to see more Brent, I think most fans would be happy if this is the ending the world's worst boss receives.

DID YOU KNOW?!

• There was much improvisation during the creation of this film. One scene in particular, when David is talking to the waitress, was largely unscripted. Dom is seen covering his eyes, supposedly out of embarrassment, but it was actually so that actor Doc Brown could hide his laughter!
• When David Brent leaves his new office to go on tour, the tune 'Handbags and Gladrags' can be heard playing lightly in the background - this song was the theme tune to The Office (UK)
• The song "Don't cry, it's Christmas" (which is HILARIOUS by the way) has been performed before in a podcast, The Podfather Christmas Special in 2001, by Ricky Gervais to Karl Pilkington and Stephen Merchant. Although the lyrics has been altered, it is the same song
• David Brent is actually the only character from The Office (UK) to appear in the film, as Gervais made it clear that this was not an Office project
• When Pauline hands David Brent his farewell card he almost reveals what was bought as a leaving present for Pete Gibbons. A reference to S1 Ep6 of The Office (UK)
• When Brent says "Whassup!" to his band this is a reference to the first episode of The Office (UK), when he greets Tim and Gareth in the same way
• David Brent does his nervous laugh 92 times during the course of the movie. At 136 minutes long (including credits) this averages to a laugh every 1 minute 27 seconds
• During one scene, David Brent makes a joke by pretending to be a character called Ho Lee Fook. This was a character Gervais created on his XFM radio show with Karl Pilkington

RATING: 8.5/10