6. Special Correspondents
2016 has not been Ricky Gervais’ finest hour. His third Golden Globes hosting gig was disappointing, to say the least, and his recent Verizon commercials don’t pack his usual punch. But worse of all, Special Correspondents, the first film he wrote and directed by himself, was a complete and utter waste. Produced and distributed by Netflix, it’s a sour disappointment for everyone involved, an absolute flatline in the laugh department and an entirely mismanaged use of Eric Bana, Kelly Macdonald and Vera Farmiga’s charm, time and talent. Lacking the sizzle, heart or comedic punch of Gervais’ other, better productions, most notably The Office UK or Extras, it not only fails to rise up to the standards of Gervais’ other movies, including the sweet-but-forgettable Cemetery Junction and the hit-and-miss The Invention of Lying, but it shows zero signs of passion, effort or inspiration on its actor-writer-director’s part. It’s plain, stale and weirdly tame, refusing to add anything relevant to the cultural conversation or sparking up any interest in its ideas or commentary. Needlessly to say, there’s nothing really special here.
It’s hard to figure out how he mustered up the enthusiasm to write the screenplay, let alone carry it through, put himself in a starring role and finish the damn thing. A remake of the 2009 French comedy of the same name, Special Correspondents feels super outdated, especially in relation to its use of technology, it lacks a firm backbone and it relies constantly on stereotypical supporting characters throughout. It’s a rare misstep for Gervais, and hopefully the worst thing he’ll ever make. Because I truly believe he’s one of the funniest people working today, and I’d be heartbroken to know if this is what we should expect from him in the future. On the bright side, Gervais’ next film, The Office UK spin-off David Brent: Life on the Road, looks much more promising. Hopefully it lives up to Gervais’ usual standards when it hits Netflix in 2017.
