Page

A Cock and Bull Story

Watch trailer

01:58

A Cock and Bull Story

Save

Summary

Satirical film-within-a-film comedy starring Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon as the two leads in an attempt by an English crew to shoot Laurence Sterne's "unfilmable" 18th-century novel, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman. But in the same way as Tristram Shandy's constant digressions hamper his attempts to progress the story beyond his traumatic birth, so too does Coogan and Brydon's bickering interfere with the actual making of the movie.

Ad

Powered By

IMDB

Review

A star rating of 4 out of 5.

Sloan Freer

Director Michael Winterbottom escapes genre pigeonholing once again with this extremely clever comedy based on Laurence Sterne's supposedly unfilmable 18th-century novel, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman. Structured as a film within a film, it presents both choice extracts of Shandy's non-linear autobiography and the journey of a modern movie crew as they try to re-create it on a shoestring budget. Re-teaming with Winterbottom following 24 Hour Party People, Steve Coogan plays Shandy (with echoes of Sterne) and Shandy's father, as well as a fictionalised version of himself. What unfolds is a neat parody of English period dramas - in which the constantly digressing Shandy struggles to progress the story beyond his traumatic birth - wrapped up in a hilarious "making of" mockumentary. Coogan and his bickering co-star Rob Brydon are brilliant, joyfully sending up their real public personae, while quirky supporting characters add further depth to the already multilayered piece.

imdb-square

6.7/10

How to watch

Loading

Credits

Cast

rolenameTristram Shandy / Walter Shandy / Steve CooganSteve CooganUncle Toby / Rob BrydonRob BrydonElizabeth ShandyKeeley HawesSusannah / Shirley HendersonShirley HendersonDr SlopDylan MoranParsonDavid WalliamsMark, the directorJeremy NorthamJennieNaomie HarrisJennyKelly MacdonaldDebbieElizabeth BerringtonIngoldsbyMark WilliamsSimonJames FleetJoeIan HartGaryKieran O'BrienPatrick Wildgust the curator / Parson YorickStephen FryWidow Wadman / Gillian AndersonGillian AndersonLindseyAshley JensenAnitaRonni AnconaTV interviewerTony Wilson

Show more

Crew

rolenameDirectorMichael Winterbottom

Details

Theatrical distributor

Redbus

Released on

2006-01-20

Languages

English

Guidance

Contains swearing and sex scenes.

Available on

DVD

Formats

Colour

News & features about A Cock and Bull Story

Ad

Ad

Ad