A Cock and Bull Story Review

It's been called the virtually 'unreadable book' so director Michael Winterbottom's attempt to bring English literature masterpiece, "The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy" to the bring screen must be commended as ambitious if nothing else. Fortunately he's crafted a film that not only delivers a post-modern look at the chaos of movie-making but also offers genuinely hilarious performances from the cream of the British comedy crop.

The movie opens with 18th century gent Tristram Shandy (Steve Coogan) narrating his life story. But just about as young Tristram is about to make his debut into the world, a yell of 'Cut' is heard and we find ourselves slap bang in the middle of a modern movie set. For the next hour and half we're treated not only to scenes adapted from Laurence Sterne's book but also to a peak behind the scenes of 'real life' as investors threaten to pull the plug on the project while Coogan has to deal with a potential scandal, the arrival of his girlfriend and baby daughter and the rising star of his friend Rob Brydon.

Delightfully witty and observant, "A Cock And Bull Story" may sound rather confusing and yes, at times it does maybe jump around a little too much. But the largely improvised interplay between its cast more than saves the day. Brydon and Coogan particularly joust with flair and imagination while Coogan especially is happy to send up the perceived image the media have created for him. Throw in appearances from Stephen Fry, David Williams, Dylan Moran, Mark Williams (the list goes on) and you get some idea of the comedy talent on show while James Fleet, Naomie Harris, Ian Hart and Gillian Anderson bring some acting gravitas to proceedings.