4 stars****
The cast list tells you this is going to be good and when that’s mixed with the writer, you know you’re on to a winner. The only disappointment with Page Eight is the length; it could have been three hours as opposed to one hundred minutes and every minute would have been as thoroughly entertaining.

So what’s it all about?

Johnny Worricker (Bill Nighy) is a long-serving MI5 officer whose closest friend is also his boss, the Director General of MI5, Benedict Baron (Michael Gambon). Baron dies of a heart attack at his country home where he lives with his wife (Johnny’s ex-wife) and step daughter (Johnny’s daughter). Baron’s death comes shortly after distributing a highly explosive report to two MI5 officers (Worricker and Jill Tankard Judy Davis) and then sharing it with the Home Secretary. At the meeting with the Home Secretary (Saskia Reeves,) Worricker verbally highlights a note at the foot of page eight alleging that the Prime Minister is aware that the US administration has been torturing prisoners in secret overseas prisons.

The screenplay is simply brilliant. The dialogue between actors ranks at an all time high. The delivery from Bill Nighy puts him in the Michael Caine class alongside Jodie Foster and Bob Hoskins. Quite simply, he runs the show, steals the show and presents an award winning performance made easier with the superiority of the words provided.

Felicity Jones continues her rise to the top of her trade. Among such high quality actors, she stands out even with the small emotional part in this film.

If ever you feel you know what’s going on between government and MI5 and between the USA and the UK, then Page Eight blows all that away and gives you a full picture which is totally believable.

It’s possibly a substantial dig at the worst prime minister the UK has seen in the last hundred years so many will see this as warranted. Writer Sir David Hare captures the mood of the nations with excellent due diligence.

Let’s hope this starts a franchise of at least three more involving this cast and crew.

Many have been big hits, like The American Pie movies, the Road Trip genre, Meet Dave, Chuck and Larry and anything involving a teenager trying to lose their virginity, especially when friends are offering to help.

One sad fact comes before each of these types of movie; you know that all the best jokes were contained in the two minute trailer you just saw.

We need to define ‘what is comedy?’ Bend It Like Beckham was a great movie, but it was hardly a comedy, yet that became it’s genre. It was a wonderful screenplay with quality acting but it didn’t have you holding your stomach in place. Love Actually had a high number of quality chortle factors. Bill Nighy’s comedic timing was perfect throughout.

Shaun Of The Dead and Hott Fuzz have shown us a different type of joke recently. We laugh at the characters, not at the jokes. It’s what they do that is funny, not what they say, especially as they don’t intend to be amusing.

A young lady told me that she couldn’t wait to go and see the recent ‘Shopaholic’ film. Having seen the trailer I’d rather watch paint dry, so we must all accept that not everything appeals to everyone and one person’s amusement is another person’s cough. That’s why we talk about marketing and genre. That’s why movies are made to fit age ranges, sometime gender and often different types of humor. Some films are best seen after a few beers and some should be teetotal to gain the benefits.

Another of this ilk hits the silver screen soon. I Love You Beth Cooper, due July 2009. The trailer is interesting, with a few almost jokes that might be funny. Here’s the trailer; you be the judge.

Airplane made me laugh, ripped my sides and kept me amused. There’s Something About Mary was funny. Monty Python’s Life Of Brian had me laughing consistently. What’s similar throughout these movies is the constant quality gags arriving on a regular basis. The Carry On films and the early Pink Panther pictures were dependable. Current movie makers appear to consider two or three average jokes placed 20 minutes apart will suffice for a big seller; just get a couple of big name stars and the dollars will follow.

Which films made you really laugh? Which made you want to repeat the jokes to friends who couldn’t understand the humor because they didn’t see the same visual content that aids the joke?