Movie discovery

Explore stories across every screen

ComedyYear2009Duration1h 57mIMDb7.3

The Boat That Rocked

ComedyDramaMusic

A band of rogue DJs that captivated Britain, playing the music that defined a generation and standing up to a government that wanted classical music, and nothing else, on the airwaves.

Trailer

Cast

Richard Curtis

Director

Philip Seymour Hoffman

The Count

Bill Nighy

Quentin

Nick Frost

Dave

Michael Hadley

Mr. Roberts

Charlie Rowe

James

Lucy Fleming

Mrs. Roberts

Tom Sturridge

Carl

Ian Mercer

Transfer Boatman

Will Adamsdale

News John

Tom Brooke

Thick Kevin

Rhys Darby

Angus Nutsford

Katherine Parkinson

Felicity

Chris O'Dowd

Simon

Ike Hamilton

Harold

Stephen Moore

Prime Minister

Kenneth Branagh

Sir Alistair Dormandy

MT

Michael Thomas

Sandford

Bo Poraj

Fredericks

Richard Curtis

Writer

Comments

10 Comments

Brenda LoiceMar 13, 2026

Harrdy SandhuMay 5, 2024

OK, i sat down to this thinking seymour Hoffman, the fat guy from hot fuzz, etc. Great, nothing else in the DVD store, so we grabbed it. Myself and the girlfriend will watch anything. But Christ, we couldn't watch this. It started semi- brightly, but descended into a meaningless montage of rubbish scenes, that had no meaning AT ALL. There is no story, i cant spoil it because we turned it off after an hour and ten minutes. I swear im a massive movie fan, but this crap just took the biscuit. People sleeping with obese men, for no reason; stupid dares; intermittent referrals to the government trying to close them down...my god, the list goes on and on. After watching, I had no idea who this film was about, and it seems like it they said to themselves "okay, there was a boat that was a pirate radio station in the 60's- lets dress up some funny characters, make them look like they don't care, and create scene after scene of unrelated crap and churn out a movie that people will spend their money on and we'll do NOTHING to deserve it... Im sorry, but I've never seen such a useless waste of movie time ever, and i sat through inspector gadget with Mathew Broderick!!! All i want to do right now is take the creators and shake them violently and say WHY WHY WHY?? what a direction-less piece of studio diarrhea. DO NOT WASTE UR PRECIOUS TIME OR MONEY PEOPLE< YOU WILL REGRET IT. and f**k knows how it got 7.6 out of ten, it is the WORST FILM I've ever watched three quarters of, and I've seen em all. What kind of nuts reviewed this? THERE IS NO STORY!! Please don't watch this complete crap. my god, i fell robbed of my precious lifes minutes having laid eyes on it. PURE CRAP.

EL~~♥️💫May 4, 2024

Honestly, i just saw this a couple of hours ago. and its great fun of a movie. i honestly thought that they seriously enjoyed making it, which the cast said they did. i say if you go in with very high, or high expectations then you'll pick out every thing about it. just go in with fun in mind and you'll receive. i know the main plot was barely looked at, but that wasn't the point of the film. it was about them doing what they wanted to do. I think they didn't try with the jokes and that was a good thing because otherwise you could obviously tell when they were trying to be funny and just get more angry at it. I honestly haven't had this much fun seeing a movie in a long time. it had real heart and feeling to it. i would recommend it to anybody who just went for a laugh. if you went for unbelievably high expectations then its not gonna seem interesting. p.s. the music soundtrack will also either make or kill it for you. i am a huge classic rock fan so i'd give it 5/5

kalkinMay 4, 2024

This is Richard Curtis's love-letter to the pirate radio ships that did so much to promote pop and rock music in the UK in the mid-60's, under the noses of the Establishment before being outlawed by the government in 1967 with the creation of the pop-oriented BBC Radio 1. I'm just a little too young to be aware of the impact of the pirates at the time although I've heard the odd nostalgic radio documentary retelling the story and to be absolutely honest, that medium probably served the story better as the subject does not justify a two hour plus movie like this. Actually the more I think about it, with its obvious references to the actual disc-jockeys (who all washed away their rebellious principles by signing up to the BBC en-masse and thus became familiar to the wider public, yours truly included), you have to wonder about the moral compass of a movie that lionises anodyne jocks like Tony Blackburn, Dave Lee Travis, Bob Harris, Stuart Henry and others. Even the inclusion of a miscast Philip Seymour-Hoffman revisiting, presumably, American renegade Emperor Rosko doesn't help the movie float (sorry) and a mock-grandiose conclusion, where yet again Curtis rallies all his cast and a horde of extras for the grandstand finish, only heightens the shortcomings. Women are treated as mere chattels, fame-obsessed fans desperate to sleep with their medium-wave heroes at the drop of a light-switch, but of course being politically correct a token black guy finds himself on board, alongside a lesbian tea-maid, who even manages to score with a pretty lesbian fan herself. The comedic scenes are telegraphed in from Carry On Doctor At Sea, plus I doubt a four-letter word was ever broadcast on-air as is made out here. Even the music is all over the place, many of the songs actually hailing from 1968, ("Jumping Jack Flash", "Fire" for example, while The Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again" is from 1971) the year after the pirates closed down, while the lack of any songs by The Beatles, the major movers of the times has to be a mistake too. The only thing that made me smile was the Python-like recreation of Jimi Hendrix's notorious "Electric Ladyland" album-sleeve (again from 1968 however, pop-pickers!), albeit with a bevy of naked women in tow. In fact the best and most rebellious thing about the film was the soundtrack, a reminder of just how tumultuously wonderful the British music scene was at the time. Buy the soundtrack album if there is one and leave this tame comedic romp at the bottom of the sea where the pirate ship eventually settles by the end.

Mary MatekenyaMay 4, 2024

The basic premise is that if you can pick music from nine years in the most productive periods in popular music, you should have a great basis for a film. Sure enough the tracks were well chosen in general, even though only snatches were heard of some. (The soundtrack CD has some eccentric choices such as Crimson & Clover by Tommy James rather than Mony Mony, but I can't remember this in the film anyway.) After its well-loved soundtrack, I am struggling to think of something good to say about this film. It has Richard Curtis's standard themes of: each person has someone out there with whom to fall instantly in love; and that a four-letter word will always cause a laugh, but sadly, there are few other comedic moments. What is worse is that the characters are barely developed and so you never identify with anyone. Instead I got the impression that writers had several half-baked ideas, but no one ever got round to picking just one or two. For example, after the son discovers his father, they just look a bit uncomfortable and the scene shifts to something else. In short, this is a film still in search of a script. I think Richard Curtis thought his reputation would be sufficient. He was wrong. And do not expect it to bear any relationship to history, though in fairness Richard Curtis admits that its objective was only entertainment rather than truth. Even so, it is still worth mentioning that instead of being a bunch of idealists who would go down with the ship, many of the DJs simply joined the BBC in 1967 (Tony Blackburn, Dave Cash, Kenny Everett, Ed Stewart, Dave Lee Travis, Johnny Walker etc). All in all a waste of an evening, though sitting through some of trailers before the film, made me realise the forthcoming attractions would have been far, far worse, so I ended up feeling grateful!

Teddy EyassuMay 4, 2024

how a script so bad was greenlit in the first place is a mystery, i suppose it being written by richard curtis helped. then add really bad direction, some of the worst acting ever seen by a professional and usually good cast, and a story line so stupid it is beyond moronic. i grew up listening to the pirate stations here in the UK not one of their djs was as boring and stupid as this lot. as for the flash King of djs played by rhys ifans, what a joke, what a cliché. avoid this utter rubbish at all costs, quite a few people i know myself included either could not make it to the end or carried on with gritted teeth and utter disbelief at the all round crappiness of it all

Sodi GaneshMay 4, 2024

Anyone looking for a plot or decent script should write their own. I saw this under the title "Good Morning England" in Paris last night and it reminded me somewhat of "Across the Universe" another film based on its fabulous sound track. It is a Good Old Boys type of film with women delegated to minor paper thin caricatures of sex-starved sixties rock fans, devoid of motivation or depth. One particular scene is particularly yucky as it involves one of the main characters, an innocent, plotting to secretly rape a woman. The pirate station resembled nothing of what was prevalent on the air waves in my teen years and the boat was far too heavily populated. But it was a great premise for a film and the cast looks as if it is having a ball. Philip Seymour Hoffman, always appearing as if he was one day overdue for a good hosing down, is marvellous, as is Bill Nighy - can any other actor do understated elegance like he can? - in the role of the Radio Station's owner, living, of course, on the ship. None of these characters have any domestic or home lives and we know next to nothing about them. Thin as onion skin characterizations. Emma Thompson is terrific (and uncredited) and barely recognizable in a key role, as is Kenneth Branagh overplaying an overblown heavy. Go for the music only and suspend any expectation of a good story. The ending signals from two miles away but everyone is having such a rollicking good time that it is hard not to laugh and share their glee. Be sure to stay till after the credits have rolled. 7 out of 10, the sound track is a must buy.

première dame 123446May 4, 2024

I have to say, that this is by far the most inspirational film I've seen to date. To feel the emotion, to care about the cause, to loath the oppression. Just the idea, that few can make a difference in this dark, depressing situation. it gives hope, it gives emotion, it gives life, but only if you can truly see it for what it is. It was an incredible tale, with many aspects of human flaws, and human greatness. We all have to believe we can make a difference, rather then blindly ignore the real problems. But if ignorance is your bliss, then sadly evolution as individual, is not. Music is Love, Peace.

🇪🇸-الاسباني-😂May 4, 2024

This is the Film of the year! No specials effects and CG and just a nice vibe to it. I found this film to be profoundly good. MUCH, MUCH better than I ever expected. Hoffman always delivers and with great UK talent. I was truly dumbfounded. Writing is good, plot is solid, Acting is fantastic, story line is great and the best movie score/soundtrack I have heard in recent history. It is fairly long but goes well with a cold one on a weekend. I hope it gets huge distribution in the US! It's a fun,uplifting, feel-good, strange and yet inspiring film. To be based on a true story and deliver this is impressive. I will tell everybody about this one. Watch it.

A.D.DMay 4, 2024

Richard Curtis' first 'non romantic comedy film' is really another romantic comedy film- it's just that the romantic bit gets swamped within 20 other sub-plots so you try and not notice. The Boat That Rocked sees Carl ( Tom Surridge ) go aboard Radio Rock- a pirate radio station owned by Quentin ( Bill Nighy ) whose DJ's (Phillip Semour Hoffman, Rhys Ifans, Nick Frost, Chris O' Dowd, Rhys Darby, etc. ) broadcast 24-hour rock and roll music to the UK. They are adored by the populace but hated by the government, including the Minister of Communications ( Kenneth Branagh ) and his chief subordinate ( Jack Davenport ) who aim to shut them down. If that was the extent of the plot then it would probably be a 100 mins film. However the Boat That Rocked has so many little sub-plots- many seeming like excuses to put in another montage or cameo cast appearance that the time has ballooned out to 154mins and it does tell at times. Furthermore, while Richard Curtis is entitled to look back on these days with an air of nostalgia, he sometimes seems to get a little too weepy eyed with the story. But these faults are more than made up for in the performances; all of which are good- and some are outstanding. Phillip Seymour Hoffman's Count is a lovable character who approaches everything with great gusto, while Chris O' Dowd's Simple Simon has a wonderful part in the middle section of the movie which brings a little bit of emotion to what is a pretty emotionally vacant movie. Nick Frost is cheeky as Dr Dave and finally Rhys Darby- fresh from Flight of the Conchords- simply shines in his role as the unpopular and daggy Angus who nonetheless gets arguably the best line in the whole movie. Overall the Boat That Rocked is silly and entertaining fun. It does get overweight by a looong script, but the soundtrack and the cast are good enough to carry it through.

Featured Picks

Looking for more entertainment? Explore our recommended gaming hub and short-drama destination.

Instant Games

Gamixo

Play casual browser games with puzzles, cards, sports, and quick challenges ready in seconds.

Short Drama

VSKIT Drama

Watch trending mini-series, romance stories, and fresh short dramas with fast daily updates.