Review of A Cock and Bull Story (2005) by Joe C — 15 Mar 2009

They said it couldn't be filmed, and it couldn't... but this is nonetheless an excellent distillation of the themes of Lawrence Sterne's proto-novel. A life story can't be self-told, because life progresses faster than the telling of it, and death brings a premature conclusion before the punchline can be delivered.

For those who've read the book (not too many, I suspect), it's a lovely take on the ideas therein, and the DVD extras include a couple of marvellous sections... Tony Wilson's interviews with Rob Brydon nd Steve Cougan, and Stephen Fry's tour of Sterne's house.

For those who didn't do English Lit at University (!), expect a quirky, self-referential film, with Brydon and Cougan playing characterised and imperfect versions of themselves, making the film in which they co-star, which runs parallel to and intercut with the'making of'.

The closest parallel would be to Charlie Kaufman's "Adaptation", and like that film you'll either love or detest the whole idea of this Cock and Bull Story. Excellent performances all round, but particularly from Brydon, and with a great cameo from Gillian Anderson, also playing herself playing a role.

Nice, self-aware pretentiousness lightly mocking, but still celebrating, the whole idea of storytelling, and well worth a couple of hours of anyone's time.