1 out of 5

Director: Richard Curtis

Wow, what a well-intentioned piece of fluff work. Pirate Radio is entertaining but never laugh-out-loud, speaking to the power of music without ever actually making you feel anything. I think that casual music and movie fans will enjoy this movie. This is not meant to be a swipe at anyone – there are tons of great actors in this film that populate well-shot, fun moments and bring color to an interesting story. But if Transformers is popcorn for action lovers, Pirate Radio is the same for music lovers. The story is an over-hollywoodized version of the truth, given attempted credibility by shooting it with an indie camera filter that blows out the colors and gives everyone garish 60s attire. This is sort of like what it was like back then, perhaps, but the drugs and sex are harmless and everyone was having fun giving a good ol razzie to the government. Again: the movie is not horrible. It looks good and sounds good. Its just bothersome in that it plays at being more than what it is, and uses classic songs with which we immediately associate to substitute for the films own lack of emotions. Along with the squeaky clean ending, I found myself never truly affected beyond the surface. The nail in the coffin: the montage of album covers accompanying the end credits. Its telling of writer/director Richard Curtis views on important music.