Mindhorn

"This isn't the Bronx, this is the Isle of Man!" shrieks an incredulous local dignitary as events take a violent turn in this exuberantly preposterous comedy. Co-written by and starring Julian Barratt (The Mighty Boosh), it finds his washed-up actor assisting a manhunt on the aforementioned island after he's been asked to don the guise of his most famous character, the fictional TV sleuth Mindhorn, in order to lure a deranged fan out into the open. Merging Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa with Bergerac and combining surrealism with satire, Mindhorn gets ample mileage from the gulf between the thespian's delusions and the ignominious reality, as he hijacks the investigation for his comeback, endures countless humiliations at the hands of old enemies and scuppers police efforts at every turn. A never-better Barratt attacks each scene with artful aplomb, and he's supported by a superb cast of foils and foes, including co-writer Simon Farnaby, Andrea Riseborough, Steve Coogan and Essie Davis. Screamingly funny and helmed with madcap energy by debut director Sean Foley, Mindhorn wrings an astonishing amount of enjoyment from the exploits of a spectacular fool.