Johnny English

So when an unthinkable plan to filch the country's beloved Crown Jewels comes to the Service's attention, the best man for the job, Agent Number One, is quickly assigned to the case... And is almost as quickly dispatched to six feet under.

Unfortunately for the British Secret Service, virtually every other able member of its esteemed ranks soon joins Agent Number One.

Now, only one man remains who can even hope to protect his country, avenge the elimination of all of the Secret Service's spies and uncover the fiend behind the plot to make off with the Crown Jewels.

Enter Johnny English.

He knows no fear.. he knows no danger.. he knows nothing.

Rowan Atkinson, the brilliant physical comedian well-known for his outrageous pratfalls and subversively innocent humour, is back on the big screen as the title character in the family comedy Johnny English - an office-bound junior intelligence worker suddenly thrust into the spotlight when a plot is uncovered that threatens world security.

All of England's hopes are resting on English. He isn't the best they havehe's the only one left.

Starring along with Atkinson as Johnny English are Natalie Imbruglia as Special Agent Lorna Campbell; renowned comedian Ben Miller as English's sidekick, Bough; and John Malkovich as the very French and very crafty business magnate, Pascal Sauvage. "The idea of doing a film about this British spy was perfect," says producer Tim Bevan. "The interesting thing about British movies is that the two genres that seem to be successful are the spy movie and the comedy - this was an opportunity to combine the two."

Atkinson (pictured) says of his character: "Johnny loves being a secret agent so much that he oversteps himself. He always thinks that he's better at something than he actually is.

"He's the sort of person who, in a hurdle race, would clear the first hurdles extremely well, but he'd be waving at the crowd and he would trip and fall on the last hurdle. It's the last 10 percent of his activity which is fatally flawed."

John Malkovich has played his share of villains, but this is the first time the actor has had to speak English with a French accent, which did not prove a problem - he has lived for several years in the country and made numerous films in French.

Did he aim for a "realistic" French accent? The actor muses: "Well, realistic? It depends, of course. You can meet French people who speak English quite well. And you can meet many others who, when they speak English, it's completely undecipherable. Pascal isn't someone utterly fluent in English."

Completing the principal cast is singer Natalie Imbruglia, who had only recently decided that she would like to juggle her singing career with acting when she received a copy of the script through her music company and was called in for a reading.

"What initially drew me to Johnny English were Rowan Atkinson and John Malkovich. Then I read the script and it made me laugh - and then I definitely wanted to play Lorna," she recalls.

The actress adds: "The fight scenes were really great. I do a bit of kickboxing in my spare time so I really enjoyed that head butting of walls!

"Lorna's a fun role to play. You know, I get to do so many different things. I've gotten to dance, to fight, to ride motorbikes. What more could a girl from Australia ask for?"

April 10, 2003 13:01