Johnny English

Movie review by Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
Johnny English Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 8+

Fine (if pretty dumb) British slapstick for tweens.

PG 2003 88 minutes
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Parents say

age 10+

Based on 22 reviews

Kids say

age 8+

Based on 27 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that Johnny English is a slapstick comedy with a few strong words ("ass") and some bathroom jokes . Some spy adventure peril including guns, but no blood or intense violence. Kids not familiar with the long-term French-English political and cultural clashes may be confused by the animosity between the French and English characters.

Community Reviews

Carlosfandango
Carlosfandango Adult
November 1, 2020
age 11+

Some course language and adult content

There were some strong words used and they weren't appropriate for my 8 year old. There's also conversations about "love making" which is awkward to explain to a child.

This title has:

Too much swearing
Vrolak
Vrolak Adult
October 16, 2020
age 10+

An unnecessary conversation made this movie for older kids

The movie is funny and fine. Some healthy laughs. A male butt is shown in a comical way, but maybe for too long. Flirting is in every conversation but not too explicit. The only thing that made feel uncomfortable in front of my 8 years old daughter, is a strange conversation about how long they have been without making love. It was unnecessary for the plot and I don’t understand why they made it. It was long, weird and unnecessary.

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
See all 22 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Rowan Atkinson plays JOHNNY ENGLISH, a low-level bureaucrat in England's spy service who dreams of being a field agent. When all of the agents are wiped out through his ineptitude, he gets his chance. England's crown jewels have been stolen by French zillionaire Pascal Sauvage (John Malkovich), who plans to take over England and turn it into a prison facility. It's up to Johnny English, his sidekick Bough (pronounced "Boff") and woman of mystery (Natalie Imbruglia) to save the day.

Is It Any Good?

The spy parts aren't exciting enough and the funny parts aren't funny enough, but the overall effect is mildly amusing. Johnny English as mild spy parody has nothing new, though Rowan Atkinson ("Mr. Bean") is a gifted comedian who manages to wring some new laughs with material that has already been fully explored in movies from Our Man Flint and Dean Martin's Matt Helm movies to Spy Hard, and Mike Myers' Austin Powers series.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how comedy can diffuse violence. How would Johnny English's violence have affected you differently if it wasn't portrayed humorously?

  • What kind of character is Johnny English? Is he a hero?

Movie Details

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