Mindhorn
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''Mindhorn'' is a 2016 British independent
comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...
directed by Sean Foley, written by
Julian Barratt Julian Barratt Pettifer (born 4 May 1968) is an English comedian, actor and musician. As a comedian and comic actor, he is known for his use of surreal humour and black comedy. During the 2000s he was part of The Mighty Boosh comedy troupe along ...
and
Simon Farnaby Simon Farnaby (born 2 April 1973) is an English actor, comedian, children’s entertainer, writer and singer. He is best known for his work with the Them There collective where he has written and starred in productions including the sketch show ...
, and executive produced by
Steve Coogan Stephen John Coogan (; born 14 October 1965) is an English-Irish actor, comedian, screenwriter and producer. His accolades include four BAFTA Awards and three British Comedy Awards, and nominations for two Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Aw ...
and
Ridley Scott Sir Ridley Scott (born 30 November 1937) is an English film director and producer. He directs films in the Science fiction film, science fiction, Crime film, crime, and historical drama, historical epic genres, with an atmospheric and highly co ...
. It stars Barratt, Farnaby,
Essie Davis Esther "Essie" Davis is an Australian actress and singer, best known for her roles as Phryne Fisher in '' Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries'' and its film adaptation, '' Miss Fisher & the Crypt of Tears'', and as Amelia Vanek in '' The Babadook''. ...
,
Russell Tovey Russell George Tovey (born 14 November 1981) is a British actor. He is best known for playing the role of werewolf George Sands in the BBC's supernatural comedy-drama '' Being Human'', Rudge in both the stage and film versions of '' The History ...
and
Andrea Riseborough Andrea Louise Riseborough (born 20 November 1981) is an English actress. She made her film debut with a small part in ''Venus'' (2006), and has since appeared in more prominent roles in '' Brighton Rock'' (2010), '' W.E.'' (2011), '' Shadow Dan ...
, with cameo appearances by
Kenneth Branagh Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh ( ; born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Born in Belfast and raised primarily in Reading, Berkshire, Branagh trained at RADA in London and served as its president from 2015 to 2024. List of award ...
and
Simon Callow Simon Phillip Hugh Callow (born 15 June 1949) is an English actor. Known as a character actor on stage and screen, he has received numerous accolades including an Olivier Award and Screen Actors Guild Award as well as nominations for two BAFT ...
as themselves. Barratt plays Richard Thorncroft, a faded television actor drawn into negotiations with a criminal who believes his character Detective Mindhorn is real.


Plot

Richard Thorncroft is a former television actor, known for playing Detective Bruce Mindhorn, a detective with a cybernetic eye that enables him to see truth (described as an optical lie detector), on the 80s TV show ''Mindhorn''. 25 years later, on the
Isle of Man The Isle of Man ( , also ), or Mann ( ), is a self-governing British Crown Dependency in the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Ireland. As head of state, Charles III holds the title Lord of Mann and is represented by a Lieutenant Govern ...
, where the series was filmed, police hunt the escaped lunatic Paul Melly, who's wanted for murder. Melly says he will only speak to Detective Mindhorn, believing Mindhorn is real. Richard is now washed up, making a living advertising embarrassing products. Hoping to boost his career, he returns to help the case, irritating the local police with his arrogance. Melly's scheduled call to the police station leads to a meeting, ending in Melly's arrest. Richard sets out to reconnect with his ''Mindhorn'' co-star and ex, Patricia, discovering she lives with his former stuntman Clive, and daughter Jasmine. Another of his ''Mindhorn'' co-stars, Pete Eastman, now stars in a successful spin-off series. Pete invites Richard around with the promise of a DVD release of ''Mindhorn'', only to mock him. Dejected, Richard parties with his former manager Moncrieff, is detained after a night of drunkenness and cocaine-snorting, and dropped by his agent. Waiting for his ferry home, Richard opens fan mail, and realises that it's from Melly, including a videotape showing the mayor committing the murder. Richard shows the tape to Moncrieff, who proposes using it to blackmail him. He refuses to give the tape back, but appears to concede after a brief altercation. Richard meets Melly and the police, but discovers Moncrieff has swapped the tape. Moncrieff independently tries to blackmail the mayor but is killed by DS Baines, the mayor's niece and part of the conspiracy. Melly and Richard escape to Melly's secret lair, filled with ''Mindhorn'' merchandise and homemade espionage equipment. Melly equips him with an extensive ''Mindhorn'' outfit, explaining he has a copy of the tape in the classic car used in ''Mindhorn''. They escape Baines when Melly throws defective ''Mindhorn''-brand truth powder in her face. At Patricia and Clive's, Richard finds the car is in the local parade. Patricia finds letters to her from Richard that Clive hid from her. Richard, Melly and Patricia go to get the car from the parade, and are pursued by DS Baines to the beach. Richard finds the "copy" of the tape is just a plasticine model Melly made. Melly is hit by a bullet and appears to die. Baines arrives, and appears to kill Patricia and injure Richard. Richard records Baines' confession on a ''Mindhorn'' recorder belt that Melly had him wear. The police arrive and Richard and Pat get up, having tricked Baines into using a gun with blanks. They prove Baines' and the mayor's roles in the murders with the tape. Richard then rescues Jasmine from Baines as she fires at him, with a gun he believes is also full of blanks. When told that he actually just narrowly dodged several real bullets, Richard faints. After recovering, Richard and Patricia get back together, Baines and the mayor are jailed, and Melly is found alive in his lair.


Cast

*
Julian Barratt Julian Barratt Pettifer (born 4 May 1968) is an English comedian, actor and musician. As a comedian and comic actor, he is known for his use of surreal humour and black comedy. During the 2000s he was part of The Mighty Boosh comedy troupe along ...
as Richard Thorncroft *
Essie Davis Esther "Essie" Davis is an Australian actress and singer, best known for her roles as Phryne Fisher in '' Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries'' and its film adaptation, '' Miss Fisher & the Crypt of Tears'', and as Amelia Vanek in '' The Babadook''. ...
as Patricia Deville *
Kenneth Branagh Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh ( ; born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Born in Belfast and raised primarily in Reading, Berkshire, Branagh trained at RADA in London and served as its president from 2015 to 2024. List of award ...
as himself *
Andrea Riseborough Andrea Louise Riseborough (born 20 November 1981) is an English actress. She made her film debut with a small part in ''Venus'' (2006), and has since appeared in more prominent roles in '' Brighton Rock'' (2010), '' W.E.'' (2011), '' Shadow Dan ...
as Detective Sergeant Elena Baines *
Steve Coogan Stephen John Coogan (; born 14 October 1965) is an English-Irish actor, comedian, screenwriter and producer. His accolades include four BAFTA Awards and three British Comedy Awards, and nominations for two Academy Awards and a Golden Globe Aw ...
as Peter Eastman *
Russell Tovey Russell George Tovey (born 14 November 1981) is a British actor. He is best known for playing the role of werewolf George Sands in the BBC's supernatural comedy-drama '' Being Human'', Rudge in both the stage and film versions of '' The History ...
as Paul Melly *
Richard McCabe Richard McCabe (born William McCabe; 18 August 1960) is a Scottish actor who has specialised in classical theatre. He is an Associate Artist of the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC). Career McCabe is an Associate Artist of the Royal Shakespeare ...
as Jeffrey Moncrieff, Richard's former manager *
Harriet Walter Dame Harriet Mary Walter is an English actress. She has received an Olivier Award and nominations for a Tony Award, five Emmy Awards, and a Screen Actors Guild Award. In 2011, Walter was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British E ...
as Richard's agent * Jessica Barden as Jasmine, Patricia's twenty-year-old daughter *
Simon Callow Simon Phillip Hugh Callow (born 15 June 1949) is an English actor. Known as a character actor on stage and screen, he has received numerous accolades including an Olivier Award and Screen Actors Guild Award as well as nominations for two BAFT ...
as himself *
Simon Farnaby Simon Farnaby (born 2 April 1973) is an English actor, comedian, children’s entertainer, writer and singer. He is best known for his work with the Them There collective where he has written and starred in productions including the sketch show ...
as Clive Parnevik, Richard's stunt double on ''Mindhorn'' and later Patricia's lover * Nicholas Farrell as the Mayor of the Isle of Man * David Schofield as Chief Inspector Derek Newsome * Tony Way as dad with newspaper * Robin Morrissey as PC Green


Release

''Mindhorn'' went on general release in the UK on 5 May 2017, and was screened at the
Belfast Film Festival The Belfast Film Festival (BFF) is an annual film festival in Northern Ireland with an attendance over 25,000. In 2022, it launched its International Competition program. BFF includes the Docs Ireland international documentary festival, as well ...
.
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
acquired the rights to broadcast in all territories outside of the UK between 12 May 2017 and May 2023. The film was nominated for a best debut screenwriter award by the
British Independent Film Awards The British Independent Film Awards (BIFA) is an organisation that celebrates, supports, and promotes British independent cinema and film-making talent in the United Kingdom. Nominations for the annual awards ceremony are announced in early Nov ...
in 2017.


Reception

On
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
the film has an approval rating of 92% based on reviews from 48 critics. The site's consensus was, "Led by a committed performance from Julian Barratt, Mindhorn offers audiences a laugh-out-loud comedy whose sublime silliness is enhanced by its more thoughtful moments."


References


External links

* {{IMDb title, tt4799064 2016 films 2016 crime comedy films British crime comedy films Films set on the Isle of Man Films shot in the Isle of Man British independent films Films about actors Films set in 1989 Films set in 2016 2016 directorial debut films Films scored by David Holmes (musician) BBC Film films British Film Institute films Scott Free Productions films 2010s English-language films 2010s British films 2016 independent films English-language crime comedy films English-language independent films