ROWAN Atkinson is back with a second outing for his bumbling British spy in Johnny English Reborn.
Following a debacle in Mozambique, English (Atkinson) is dropped by MI7 and takes himself out of civilisation to seek the meaning to his existence.
But when a mysterious source claims to have information regarding a plot to assassinate the Chinese Premier, but will only talk to the former super spy, English is reactivated and sent into the field - much to the chagrin of MI7 head Pegasus (Gillian Anderson).
Teaming up with junior sidekick Agent Tucker (Daniel Kaluuya) and with the help of Agent One (Dominic West), can the shamed secret agent stop the murder plot?
Or with double-crosses at every turn, will he lose more than just his reputation?
Older but not wiser
It's been eight years since audiences cringed their way through Johnny English's big screen debut.
Thankfully, despite being older, he is certainly not wiser.
Atkinson's oblivious charm and rubber-faced gurning continues to amuse, offering enough light-hearted fare with the odd belly laugh thrown in to keep things on track as his over confident spy (originally created to advertise a credit card) stumbles between 007 inspired set-pieces.
Whether driving a motorised wheelchair or jumping around in a body-bag, he shows no sign of losing his comedic edge.
While it is the protagonist who generates the chuckles, it is a sterling (mostly) Brit cast who provide the comedic straight-faced reactions.
Dominic West and Rosamund Pike add the much-needed James Bond-esque style, while a English-accented Gillian Anderson provides the intimidating authority.
Dead-pan send-ups of spy capers are certainly not new, and Reborn's blatant embracing of the clichés is where it works.
From the gadgets and exotic locations to the beautiful women, their shameless inclusion maintains the tone.
Nothing new
But while the essence of the genre is intact, the narrative struggles to stand out.
A flimsy script by William Davies and Hamish McColl offers very little aside from a comedy vehicle for Atkinson, drawing more than a few parallels with American spy-spoof Get Smart.
Despite a slew of mediocre box office entries - including St Trinian's 2 and the under-whelming Dorian Grey - director Oliver Park keeps the action and comedy relatively tight throughout the brief 100 minute runtime, throwing in enough explosions and over the top silliness to entertain.
Johnny English Reborn stands by its PG rating as a harmless piece of family-fun, with enough visual slapstick, expected but enjoyable gags and superbly delivered one-liners to provide a license to thrill for all ages.
007/10 - Bond meets Bean.