3 Ups And 2 Downs From David Brent: Life On The Road

1. Gervais Can Carry A Movie As Brent

As should be clear from the other Ups, much of what really works in the movie comes from the success of David Brent as a character. Gervais still inhabits the role perfectly (perhaps betraying they're more alike than he lets on) and for any faults with the film, is involved enough to carry the weight of a movie almost single handedly.

His singing is particularly strong. There's a slight disconnect in that there's no way a real Brent would be that good, but the faux-rock star voice is in the right ballpark and there's an unashamed confidence to delivering some highly questionable lyrics.

Is it enough to kick-start of a whole new series of content on? No, and it's hardly surprising Gervais has said he's planning to kill Brent off, but for this one-off it's a very impressive turn that for the most part does nothing to sully the character's legacy.

The only thing that doesn't quite gel is certain character elements that have become caricaturistic, like his embarrassed semi-laugh whenever making what he believes to be a rather risqué joke.

And on that minor down point, let's take a look at what really doesn't work.