Quick Review: Pirate Radio

I'm sure I'm not the first to say this, but the best part of "Pirate Radio" was the soundtrack. Originally called "The Boat That Rocked" when it was released in the UK, the new title plainly spells out the subject matter. In the mid-1960s, to counter the BBC's lack of rock music airplay, pirate radio stations sprung up to fill the void, broadcasting from ships located in international waters. The movie tells the story of a fictitious station, Radio Rock, and various subplots involving those on the station's boat, including DJs (among them an American played by Philip Seymour Hoffman, hamming it up), other station personnel, the ship's lesbian cook, and the young godson of the ship's captain, sent there by his mother after being expelled from school. While all this is going on, a government minister (Kenneth Branagh, also hamming it up), extremely offended by the station's antics, tries to find some way to shut down the station. It's amusing at times, but ultimately kind of a mess, and takes a ridiculous turn after the Branagh character's assistant finds a way to persuade Parliament to enact a law banning the stations. This boat may not rock so much, but the music definitely does. My grade: C.