Johnny English Reborn
Encyclopedia
Johnny English Reborn is a 2011 British spy
comedy film
parodying the James Bond
secret agent
genre and film franchise reboots. The film is the sequel to Johnny English
(2003), and stars Rowan Atkinson
reprising his role as the title character and directed by Oliver Parker
. The film has a slightly darker tone than the previous film but retains Atkinson's signature humor. Like its predecessor, it was met with mixed reviews but did well at the box office.
) is learning martial arts
in Tibet
as penance for an earlier disastrous mission. His Tibetan guru and mentor, Ting Wang, is actually an MI7 sleeper agent: their employers have requested Johnny's services. It is discovered that English's mentor has booked a one-way flight to London for him.
Johnny accesses MI7's London headquarters, as it is discovered that the agency has been privatised by a joint venture with Japanese electronic giant Toshiba. Johnny rendezvouses with new boss "Pegasus", real name Pamela Thornton (Gillian Anderson
), in the latter's office. MI7 (codenamed Toshiba British Intelligence) identifies him as the best agent for a new mission: stopping a group of international assassins before they kill the Chinese
premier and cause global chaos. Now that the world needs him once again, Johnny English returns to his role with confidence. Hilarity ensues when he almost kills Thornton's tabby cat and falls off an exercise ball.
Johnny rendezvouses with supposed friend and fellow agent Simon Ambrose (codenamed "Agent One"), who in turn reintroduces him to Patch Quartermain, MI7's resident inventor. Johnny is supplied with the following gadgets: a digital camera that fires high-powered darts, a satellite receiver, a tracking device and a voice-activated Rolls Royce Phantom that also comes with armour plating, a secret compartment in the trunk used to store an assortment of weapons and gadgets, a bonnet ornament-mounted laser with target-seeking capability and presumably autonomous capabilities, as the Rolls Royce Phantom is later discovered to be able to detect an obstruction and circumvent it. Patch himself states that the Rolls Royce comes with "all the bells and whistles" (meaning high-end enhancements), which might insinuate that this particular car is equipped with gadgets typically associated with armed spy cars (such as missiles and machine guns). Unfortunately, however, only the dart-firing camera and the Rolls Royce are used.
In Macau, his Chinese contact is murdered in a casino by an unknown assailant, fortunately, however, English discovers a poker chip in the man's hand with information written down regarding Fisher(Richard Schiff
)'s location. In Hong Kong, English meets up with him. He is an ex-CIA agent who ultimately reveals that he is a member of 'Vortex', a secret cabal of assassins-for-hire. Fisher is killed by an assassin (Pik-Sen Lim
) dressed as a cleaner who then manages to escape, but English manages to track down and incapacitate the killer cleaner's accomplice in a fight at the pier, after subduing his backup.
English manages to obtain one of three metal "keys" that, when combined, can be used to unlock an assassination weapon. While bragging to his sidekick Tucker (Daniel Kaluuya
) about the success of his mission on a flight back to the United Kingdom
,one of Vortex's members (disguised as a steward
) uses trickery to steal the key from English's briefcase.
English loses face with the Foreign Secretary and Pegasus at the latter's estate when it is discovered that the case is empty. English proceeds to assaulting Thornton's mother twice, both times mistaking her for the killer cleaner.
Kate Sumner (Rosamund Pike
), MI7's behavioral psychologist engages in an "off-hours" session with English, prompting him to recall the previous events of his failed mission in Mozambique (discovered to have been sabotaged by Vortex). He unearths the identity of the second member of Vortex as a result. English sets out again, this time meeting with Karlenko (Mark Ivanir), a Russian
agent who is critically wounded by the cleaner lady assassin in front of him on a golf course
. English and Tucker hijack Karlenko's private helicopter. Karlenko succumbs to the wounds he obtained when he was shot at by the killer cleaner, but not before revealing that Vortex's agents are members of the KGB, the CIA, and even English's beloved MI7.
English arrives at a meeting in which those present include Pegasus, Ambrose, Patch Quartermain and the Prime Minister, alongside other high-ranking government officials. The Prime Minister declares that is vital for Britain to establish diplomatic ties with China, as rogue states in Southeast Asia have begun to secretly develop nuclear weapons. Simon reveals that the Swiss government have agreed to lend them Le Bastion for the talks, which is apparently their government fortress in the Swiss Alps. English accidentally breaks the lever on his height-adjustable office chair, resulting in a moment of sheer comic genius.
Ambrose and English dine together, informing him that he knows a mole is present in MI7. Slater gets ready to gun down English, until it is discovered that the latter person does not even know who the traitor is. Tucker confronts Ambrose in the bathroom stalls at gunpoint, discovering Ambrose is the mole, until English orders him to leave. It is revealed that, prior to the incident, Tucker managed to hack into Karlenko's computer, thus gaining access to a photograph of Ambrose and Karlenko in Mozambique (Ambrose previously lied about not knowing Karlenko).
Ambrose and English converse together outside the restaurant, as Simon dupes Johnny into believing that Patch Quartermain is the traitor and that Patch always regarded Johnny with disdain. English, unaware that Simon is the mole, entrusts him with the key, which results in Ambrose contacting Pegasus and telling her that Johnny English is the traitor.
English confronts Patch in a London church building, ultimately discovering that he has framed as the traitor. Johnny escapes MI7's clutches on Patch's high-tech wheelchair, equipped with retractable armrest-mounted pistols, a modified gearbox allowing him to reach enhanced speeds and a reclining seat. Johnny uses the armrest-mounted pistols to prevent wheelchair-bound citizens from using a wheelchair-accessible elevator, the advanced speeds to lose the tail from MI7 pursuers and the reclining seat to proceed beneath the undercarriage of a lorry.
Johnny goes to Kate's house and convinces her that he is not the traitor and that the organisation Vortex is behind the assassination and that they were also in Mozambique
(his disastrous mission that went wrong), before succumbing to the effects of a powerful sleeping drug released via the wheelchair and being rendered unconscious.
When English wakes up, he notices Kate scrutinising footage of President Shambal's assassination. The two realise that the behaviour of Shambal's bodyguard seemed abnormal and out of place. Together they find out that Vortex is using a drug
called timoxeline barbebutenol
(restricted material) that allows people to be controlled for a brief time before they die of heart failure. They also find out that the three "keys" are needed to access the drug. Kate reveals that she is travelling to Switzerland, and so won't be able to help.
Meanwhile, Ambrose enters what appears to be a London office building, eventually gaining access to a vial of a mysterious fluid contained in a safety deposit box. He later meets up with his client, alongside his redheaded subordinate, as they confirm the previously agreed payment of 500 million USD, which is to be transferred to Ambrose's Swiss bank account.
Later, Ambrose arrives to Kate's apartment to take her to the airport. After Simon leaves, English discovers that the killer cleaner is present in Kate's apartment. The killer cleaner attempts to kill him, even using a chainsaw built into her vacuum cleaner, as Johnny uses a garbage chute to escape, albeit he ends up in a nearby dumpster.
English confronts former subordinate Tucker in the latter's bedroom and convinces Tucker to embark with him on a new mission. English and Tucker attempt to sneak into a heavily-guarded fortress in the Swiss Alps where the premier is to be assassinated. Unfortunately, however, English inadvertently activates a distress beacon (mistaking it for a rappel device) that uses some sort of voice simulator, which alerts the armed guards to their presence. The incident ultimately concludes with the ejection of an aerial flare that alerts the armed guards to their location. Thinking quickly, English has Tucker attack him, with his subordinate faking his death with a pistol. English is put into a body-bag, as Tucker and English manage to gain access to the building. Tucker attacks the armed guards escorting them, as English attempts to hop over to Thornton's office, slamming his head into a nearby wall in the process.
English finds Pegasus, head of MI7, and convinces her that Ambrose is the traitor, just before she attempts to drink the beverage in which the drug is present. English accidentally drinks it instead, rendering him vulnerable to Ambrose's commands. Pegasus is knocked unconscious by English, as ordered by Ambrose.
Meanwhile, however, Tucker is cornered by Ambrose's redheaded accomplice, who draws a combat knife to Tucker's throat.
Ambrose orders English to kill the premier, the man armed with a pistol disguised as a tube of lipstick. Meanwhile, however, Tucker manages to subdue his attacker when he disarms the woman of her firearm.
English attempts to resist the effects of the drug after experiencing a flashback, thus remembering what his master, the monk
, taught him. Johnny engages in a relentless fight with himself, as Tucker attempts to interrupt Ambrose's frequency used to communicate with English via a Toshiba laptop. English gets ready to kill the Chinese premier, before Tucker finally disrupts the frequency via an unorthodox method: using a local radio station which causes Johnny to dance to the music.
The effects of the drug wear off, as English collapses and seemingly dies of heart failure. However, Johnny is revived by Kate, who kisses him on the lips, as his heart rate escalates. Johnny attempts to chase after Simon, jumping off the building and using a parachute to safely descend to the snow. English hijacks a snow-mobile and chases after the MI7 traitor. Eventually, Johnny catches up to Simon, who is using an air-suspended gondola lift. He launches the snowcat off a cliff, as he is seen to be clinging onto the cable-car. The two engage in a fistfight, with English notably enduring several kicks to the groin. Johnny manages to eventually obtain Simon's pistol, yet falls off the car, the snow fortunately breaking his fall. Ambrose tries to shoot English with said pistol, which culminates with English pulling out his supposedly bulletproof umbrella which actually shoots a rocket at the cable-car, killing Ambrose.
English is knighted, but, during the ceremony, he finds out that the Queen is the killer cleaner in disguise, and she tries to kill him yet again. He chases after her and violently hits her on the head with a tray, only to find out, when the guards bring the real killer inside, that he has attacked the real Queen.
In the post-credits scene English is seen making a takeaway for Kate Summers to the tune of "In the Hall of the Mountain King".
first announced that they were producing a sequel
to Johnny English on 8 April 2010, seven years following the first film.
Filming began on 11 September 2010 in Central London at Cannon Street, with further production scheduled for the week beginning 13 September 2010 at Brocket Hall
, Hertfordshire and later in Hawley Woods in Hampshire
, Macau and Hong Kong. Filming took place on The Mall in Central London on 25 September 2010.
The Johnny English Theme from the original film is quoted four times in the score.
reports that 38% of 78 critics have given the film a positive review, with a rating average of 4.7 out of 10. The website's consensus is "Arguably a marginal improvement on its mostly-forgotten predecessor, Johnny English Reborn nonetheless remains mired in broad, tired spy spoofing that wastes Rowan Atkinson's once considerable comedic talent". Metacritic
, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, gives the film a score of 46 based on 20 reviews. CinemaScore
polls reported that the average grade moviegoers gave the film was a "B" on an A+ to F scale.
On the Australian television programme At the Movies, Margaret Pomeranz
rated the film 3 stars and David Stratton
rated the film 2 stars (the highest being 5 stars). Indian film critic Nikhat Kazmi
of Times of India gave the film a positive review praising Atkinson's characteristic flair for comedy once again, giving it a 4 star rating out of 5.
Spy film
The spy film genre deals with the subject of fictional espionage, either in a realistic way or as a basis for fantasy . Many novels in the spy fiction genre have been adapted as films, including works by John Buchan, John Le Carré, Ian Fleming and Len Deighton...
comedy film
Comedy film
Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humour. They are designed to elicit laughter from the audience. Comedies are mostly light-hearted dramas and are made to amuse and entertain the audiences...
parodying the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
secret agent
Secret Agent
Secret Agent is a British film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, loosely based on two stories in Ashenden: Or the British Agent by W. Somerset Maugham. The film starred John Gielgud, Peter Lorre, Madeleine Carroll, and Robert Young...
genre and film franchise reboots. The film is the sequel to Johnny English
Johnny English
Johnny English is a 2003 British action comedy film parodying the James Bond secret agent genre. The film stars Rowan Atkinson as the incompetent titular English spy, with John Malkovich, Natalie Imbruglia, Tim Pigott-Smith and Ben Miller in supporting roles...
(2003), and stars Rowan Atkinson
Rowan Atkinson
Rowan Sebastian Atkinson is a British actor, comedian, and screenwriter. He is most famous for his work on the satirical sketch comedy show Not The Nine O'Clock News, and the sitcoms Blackadder, Mr. Bean and The Thin Blue Line...
reprising his role as the title character and directed by Oliver Parker
Oliver Parker
Oliver Parker is an English film director.-Biography:Parker was born in London, the son of Jillian, Lady Parker, a writer and GP , and Sir Peter Parker, formerly Chief executive of British Rail...
. The film has a slightly darker tone than the previous film but retains Atkinson's signature humor. Like its predecessor, it was met with mixed reviews but did well at the box office.
Plot
Johnny English (Rowan AtkinsonRowan Atkinson
Rowan Sebastian Atkinson is a British actor, comedian, and screenwriter. He is most famous for his work on the satirical sketch comedy show Not The Nine O'Clock News, and the sitcoms Blackadder, Mr. Bean and The Thin Blue Line...
) is learning martial arts
Martial arts
Martial arts are extensive systems of codified practices and traditions of combat, practiced for a variety of reasons, including self-defense, competition, physical health and fitness, as well as mental and spiritual development....
in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
as penance for an earlier disastrous mission. His Tibetan guru and mentor, Ting Wang, is actually an MI7 sleeper agent: their employers have requested Johnny's services. It is discovered that English's mentor has booked a one-way flight to London for him.
Johnny accesses MI7's London headquarters, as it is discovered that the agency has been privatised by a joint venture with Japanese electronic giant Toshiba. Johnny rendezvouses with new boss "Pegasus", real name Pamela Thornton (Gillian Anderson
Gillian Anderson
Gillian Leigh Anderson is an American actress.After beginning her career in theatre, Anderson achieved international recognition for her role as Special Agent Dana Scully on the American television series The X-Files. During the show's nine seasons, Anderson won Emmy, Golden Globe, and Screen...
), in the latter's office. MI7 (codenamed Toshiba British Intelligence) identifies him as the best agent for a new mission: stopping a group of international assassins before they kill the Chinese
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
premier and cause global chaos. Now that the world needs him once again, Johnny English returns to his role with confidence. Hilarity ensues when he almost kills Thornton's tabby cat and falls off an exercise ball.
Johnny rendezvouses with supposed friend and fellow agent Simon Ambrose (codenamed "Agent One"), who in turn reintroduces him to Patch Quartermain, MI7's resident inventor. Johnny is supplied with the following gadgets: a digital camera that fires high-powered darts, a satellite receiver, a tracking device and a voice-activated Rolls Royce Phantom that also comes with armour plating, a secret compartment in the trunk used to store an assortment of weapons and gadgets, a bonnet ornament-mounted laser with target-seeking capability and presumably autonomous capabilities, as the Rolls Royce Phantom is later discovered to be able to detect an obstruction and circumvent it. Patch himself states that the Rolls Royce comes with "all the bells and whistles" (meaning high-end enhancements), which might insinuate that this particular car is equipped with gadgets typically associated with armed spy cars (such as missiles and machine guns). Unfortunately, however, only the dart-firing camera and the Rolls Royce are used.
In Macau, his Chinese contact is murdered in a casino by an unknown assailant, fortunately, however, English discovers a poker chip in the man's hand with information written down regarding Fisher(Richard Schiff
Richard Schiff
Richard Schiff is an American actor. He is best known for playing Toby Ziegler on the NBC television drama The West Wing, a role for which he received an Emmy Award...
)'s location. In Hong Kong, English meets up with him. He is an ex-CIA agent who ultimately reveals that he is a member of 'Vortex', a secret cabal of assassins-for-hire. Fisher is killed by an assassin (Pik-Sen Lim
Pik-Sen Lim
Pik-Sen Lim is a Chinese-British actress who has appeared on British television since the 1950s. She is best known for playing the character of Su-Lee, the Chinese Communist student in the British sitcom Mind Your Language ....
) dressed as a cleaner who then manages to escape, but English manages to track down and incapacitate the killer cleaner's accomplice in a fight at the pier, after subduing his backup.
English manages to obtain one of three metal "keys" that, when combined, can be used to unlock an assassination weapon. While bragging to his sidekick Tucker (Daniel Kaluuya
Daniel Kaluuya
Daniel Kaluuya is an English actor, comedian and writer, who is best known for playing Posh Kenneth in the E4 teen-drama Skins. He has most recently been seen starring in the BBC dark comedy series Psychoville playing Michael Fry and Mac in the new BBC 3's horror drama The Fades.-Biography:Kaluuya...
) about the success of his mission on a flight back to the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
,one of Vortex's members (disguised as a steward
Steward
The term steward may refer to:- Titles and positions :* Arch-Steward, a seneschal, prince elector of the Holy Roman Empire* Steward, a flight attendant* Wine steward, a sommelier* Butler, the steward of a household...
) uses trickery to steal the key from English's briefcase.
English loses face with the Foreign Secretary and Pegasus at the latter's estate when it is discovered that the case is empty. English proceeds to assaulting Thornton's mother twice, both times mistaking her for the killer cleaner.
Kate Sumner (Rosamund Pike
Rosamund Pike
Rosamund Mary Elizabeth Pike is a British actress. Her film roles include villainous Bond girl Miranda Frost in Die Another Day, Jane Bennet in Pride and Prejudice, Helen in An Education, Lisa in Made in Dagenham, Miriam Grant-Panofsky in Barney's Version and Kate Sumner in Johnny English...
), MI7's behavioral psychologist engages in an "off-hours" session with English, prompting him to recall the previous events of his failed mission in Mozambique (discovered to have been sabotaged by Vortex). He unearths the identity of the second member of Vortex as a result. English sets out again, this time meeting with Karlenko (Mark Ivanir), a Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
agent who is critically wounded by the cleaner lady assassin in front of him on a golf course
Golf course
A golf course comprises a series of holes, each consisting of a teeing ground, fairway, rough and other hazards, and a green with a flagstick and cup, all designed for the game of golf. A standard round of golf consists of playing 18 holes, thus most golf courses have this number of holes...
. English and Tucker hijack Karlenko's private helicopter. Karlenko succumbs to the wounds he obtained when he was shot at by the killer cleaner, but not before revealing that Vortex's agents are members of the KGB, the CIA, and even English's beloved MI7.
English arrives at a meeting in which those present include Pegasus, Ambrose, Patch Quartermain and the Prime Minister, alongside other high-ranking government officials. The Prime Minister declares that is vital for Britain to establish diplomatic ties with China, as rogue states in Southeast Asia have begun to secretly develop nuclear weapons. Simon reveals that the Swiss government have agreed to lend them Le Bastion for the talks, which is apparently their government fortress in the Swiss Alps. English accidentally breaks the lever on his height-adjustable office chair, resulting in a moment of sheer comic genius.
Ambrose and English dine together, informing him that he knows a mole is present in MI7. Slater gets ready to gun down English, until it is discovered that the latter person does not even know who the traitor is. Tucker confronts Ambrose in the bathroom stalls at gunpoint, discovering Ambrose is the mole, until English orders him to leave. It is revealed that, prior to the incident, Tucker managed to hack into Karlenko's computer, thus gaining access to a photograph of Ambrose and Karlenko in Mozambique (Ambrose previously lied about not knowing Karlenko).
Ambrose and English converse together outside the restaurant, as Simon dupes Johnny into believing that Patch Quartermain is the traitor and that Patch always regarded Johnny with disdain. English, unaware that Simon is the mole, entrusts him with the key, which results in Ambrose contacting Pegasus and telling her that Johnny English is the traitor.
English confronts Patch in a London church building, ultimately discovering that he has framed as the traitor. Johnny escapes MI7's clutches on Patch's high-tech wheelchair, equipped with retractable armrest-mounted pistols, a modified gearbox allowing him to reach enhanced speeds and a reclining seat. Johnny uses the armrest-mounted pistols to prevent wheelchair-bound citizens from using a wheelchair-accessible elevator, the advanced speeds to lose the tail from MI7 pursuers and the reclining seat to proceed beneath the undercarriage of a lorry.
Johnny goes to Kate's house and convinces her that he is not the traitor and that the organisation Vortex is behind the assassination and that they were also in Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
(his disastrous mission that went wrong), before succumbing to the effects of a powerful sleeping drug released via the wheelchair and being rendered unconscious.
When English wakes up, he notices Kate scrutinising footage of President Shambal's assassination. The two realise that the behaviour of Shambal's bodyguard seemed abnormal and out of place. Together they find out that Vortex is using a drug
Drug
A drug, broadly speaking, is any substance that, when absorbed into the body of a living organism, alters normal bodily function. There is no single, precise definition, as there are different meanings in drug control law, government regulations, medicine, and colloquial usage.In pharmacology, a...
called timoxeline barbebutenol
C11H18N2O3
The molecular formula C11H18N2O3 may refer to :* Amobarbital* Pentobarbital...
(restricted material) that allows people to be controlled for a brief time before they die of heart failure. They also find out that the three "keys" are needed to access the drug. Kate reveals that she is travelling to Switzerland, and so won't be able to help.
Meanwhile, Ambrose enters what appears to be a London office building, eventually gaining access to a vial of a mysterious fluid contained in a safety deposit box. He later meets up with his client, alongside his redheaded subordinate, as they confirm the previously agreed payment of 500 million USD, which is to be transferred to Ambrose's Swiss bank account.
Later, Ambrose arrives to Kate's apartment to take her to the airport. After Simon leaves, English discovers that the killer cleaner is present in Kate's apartment. The killer cleaner attempts to kill him, even using a chainsaw built into her vacuum cleaner, as Johnny uses a garbage chute to escape, albeit he ends up in a nearby dumpster.
English confronts former subordinate Tucker in the latter's bedroom and convinces Tucker to embark with him on a new mission. English and Tucker attempt to sneak into a heavily-guarded fortress in the Swiss Alps where the premier is to be assassinated. Unfortunately, however, English inadvertently activates a distress beacon (mistaking it for a rappel device) that uses some sort of voice simulator, which alerts the armed guards to their presence. The incident ultimately concludes with the ejection of an aerial flare that alerts the armed guards to their location. Thinking quickly, English has Tucker attack him, with his subordinate faking his death with a pistol. English is put into a body-bag, as Tucker and English manage to gain access to the building. Tucker attacks the armed guards escorting them, as English attempts to hop over to Thornton's office, slamming his head into a nearby wall in the process.
English finds Pegasus, head of MI7, and convinces her that Ambrose is the traitor, just before she attempts to drink the beverage in which the drug is present. English accidentally drinks it instead, rendering him vulnerable to Ambrose's commands. Pegasus is knocked unconscious by English, as ordered by Ambrose.
Meanwhile, however, Tucker is cornered by Ambrose's redheaded accomplice, who draws a combat knife to Tucker's throat.
Ambrose orders English to kill the premier, the man armed with a pistol disguised as a tube of lipstick. Meanwhile, however, Tucker manages to subdue his attacker when he disarms the woman of her firearm.
English attempts to resist the effects of the drug after experiencing a flashback, thus remembering what his master, the monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
, taught him. Johnny engages in a relentless fight with himself, as Tucker attempts to interrupt Ambrose's frequency used to communicate with English via a Toshiba laptop. English gets ready to kill the Chinese premier, before Tucker finally disrupts the frequency via an unorthodox method: using a local radio station which causes Johnny to dance to the music.
The effects of the drug wear off, as English collapses and seemingly dies of heart failure. However, Johnny is revived by Kate, who kisses him on the lips, as his heart rate escalates. Johnny attempts to chase after Simon, jumping off the building and using a parachute to safely descend to the snow. English hijacks a snow-mobile and chases after the MI7 traitor. Eventually, Johnny catches up to Simon, who is using an air-suspended gondola lift. He launches the snowcat off a cliff, as he is seen to be clinging onto the cable-car. The two engage in a fistfight, with English notably enduring several kicks to the groin. Johnny manages to eventually obtain Simon's pistol, yet falls off the car, the snow fortunately breaking his fall. Ambrose tries to shoot English with said pistol, which culminates with English pulling out his supposedly bulletproof umbrella which actually shoots a rocket at the cable-car, killing Ambrose.
English is knighted, but, during the ceremony, he finds out that the Queen is the killer cleaner in disguise, and she tries to kill him yet again. He chases after her and violently hits her on the head with a tray, only to find out, when the guards bring the real killer inside, that he has attacked the real Queen.
In the post-credits scene English is seen making a takeaway for Kate Summers to the tune of "In the Hall of the Mountain King".
Cast
- Rowan AtkinsonRowan AtkinsonRowan Sebastian Atkinson is a British actor, comedian, and screenwriter. He is most famous for his work on the satirical sketch comedy show Not The Nine O'Clock News, and the sitcoms Blackadder, Mr. Bean and The Thin Blue Line...
as MI7 Agent Sir Johnny English - Gillian AndersonGillian AndersonGillian Leigh Anderson is an American actress.After beginning her career in theatre, Anderson achieved international recognition for her role as Special Agent Dana Scully on the American television series The X-Files. During the show's nine seasons, Anderson won Emmy, Golden Globe, and Screen...
as MI7 Head Pamela Thornton (codenamed "Pegasus") - Rosamund PikeRosamund PikeRosamund Mary Elizabeth Pike is a British actress. Her film roles include villainous Bond girl Miranda Frost in Die Another Day, Jane Bennet in Pride and Prejudice, Helen in An Education, Lisa in Made in Dagenham, Miriam Grant-Panofsky in Barney's Version and Kate Sumner in Johnny English...
as Kate Summers, MI7's behavioural psychologist and English's love interest - Dominic WestDominic WestDominic Gerard Fe West is an English actor best known for his role as Detective Jimmy McNulty in the HBO drama series The Wire.-Film and TV:...
as Simon Ambrose, a high-ranking MI7 field agent who is actually one of the three founding members of Vortex. Ambrose, codenamed Agent One, regards English with disdain. Ambrose is the main antagonist of the movie. - Daniel KaluuyaDaniel KaluuyaDaniel Kaluuya is an English actor, comedian and writer, who is best known for playing Posh Kenneth in the E4 teen-drama Skins. He has most recently been seen starring in the BBC dark comedy series Psychoville playing Michael Fry and Mac in the new BBC 3's horror drama The Fades.-Biography:Kaluuya...
as Agent Tucker, English's youthful sidekick and the logical thinker of the two - Richard SchiffRichard SchiffRichard Schiff is an American actor. He is best known for playing Toby Ziegler on the NBC television drama The West Wing, a role for which he received an Emmy Award...
as Titus Fisher, an ex-CIA agent who turned renegade and is the first member of Vortex. - Tim McInnernyTim McInnernyTim McInnerny is an English actor. He is known for his role as Percy in Blackadder and Blackadder II, and as Captain Darling in Blackadder Goes Forth...
as Patch Quartermain, MI7 agent and inventor (the equivalent of "Q" from the 007 films). - Mark Ivanir as Artem Karlenko (alias Sergei Pudovkin), a Russian former double agent who was recruited by MI7 in Moscow, having been under the employ of the KGB. After Karlenko came over to England, he used the cover identity of Sergei Pudovkin, a man of immense wealth and a member of an exclusive golf club.
- Burn GormanBurn GormanBurn Hugh Gorman is an American-born English actor and musician. Burn is best known for his roles as Owen Harper in Torchwood and as William Guppy in Bleak House.-Personal life:...
as Slater, a corrupt MI7 agent and Ambrose's accomplice - Joséphine Baume as Madeleine, Ambrose's henchwoman.
- Pik-Sen LimPik-Sen LimPik-Sen Lim is a Chinese-British actress who has appeared on British television since the 1950s. She is best known for playing the character of Su-Lee, the Chinese Communist student in the British sitcom Mind Your Language ....
as the Killer Cleaner - Togo IgawaTogo Igawa, born in Tokyo on 26 September 1946, is a Japanese actor who works primarily in British films and television.In recent years he has had roles in major motion pictures such as Revolver, Memoirs of a Geisha, The Last Samurai, and Sunshine...
as Ting Wang, a Tibetan guru and English's mentor, as well as an MI7 sleeper agent - Stephen Campbell MooreStephen Campbell MooreStephen Campbell Moore is an English actor, best known for his roles in the Alan Bennett play The History Boys and its subsequent film.-Career:...
as British Prime Minister
Production
Universal PicturesUniversal Studios
Universal Pictures , a subsidiary of NBCUniversal, is one of the six major movie studios....
first announced that they were producing a sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
to Johnny English on 8 April 2010, seven years following the first film.
Filming began on 11 September 2010 in Central London at Cannon Street, with further production scheduled for the week beginning 13 September 2010 at Brocket Hall
Brocket Hall
Brocket Hall is a country house in Hertfordshire, England, from London by road. It was built for Sir Matthew Lamb, 1st Baronet, in around 1760 to designs by the architect James Paine. It stands on the site of two predecessors, the first of which was built in 1239 and the second in about 1430. It...
, Hertfordshire and later in Hawley Woods in Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, Macau and Hong Kong. Filming took place on The Mall in Central London on 25 September 2010.
The Johnny English Theme from the original film is quoted four times in the score.
Reception
Much like its predecessor, the film received mixed reviews from critics. Review aggregator Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
reports that 38% of 78 critics have given the film a positive review, with a rating average of 4.7 out of 10. The website's consensus is "Arguably a marginal improvement on its mostly-forgotten predecessor, Johnny English Reborn nonetheless remains mired in broad, tired spy spoofing that wastes Rowan Atkinson's once considerable comedic talent". Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, gives the film a score of 46 based on 20 reviews. CinemaScore
CinemaScore
CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data.-Background:...
polls reported that the average grade moviegoers gave the film was a "B" on an A+ to F scale.
On the Australian television programme At the Movies, Margaret Pomeranz
Margaret Pomeranz
Margaret Pomeranz AM is an Australian film critic and television personality.-Early life:Pomeranz was born in 1944 in Waverley, a suburb of Sydney, and was educated at the Presbyterian Ladies' College, Sydney in Croydon, the then newly opened Macquarie University, and the Playwright's Studio at...
rated the film 3 stars and David Stratton
David Stratton
David James Stratton is an English- Australian film critic and television personality.-Life and career:Born in Trowbridge, Wiltshire, England in 1939, Stratton was sent to Hampshire to see out the war years with his grandmother, an avid filmgoer, where he was taken to the local cinemas regularly...
rated the film 2 stars (the highest being 5 stars). Indian film critic Nikhat Kazmi
Nikhat Kazmi
Nikhat Kazmi is a senior correspondent and well-known film critic from India, who has been writing for The Times of India, since 1987.-Books:* If Shakespeare was a gun: a play. Writers Workshop, 1984....
of Times of India gave the film a positive review praising Atkinson's characteristic flair for comedy once again, giving it a 4 star rating out of 5.