When writer-director Bruce Robinson reunited with the star of his cult classic, Withnail & I, expectations were obviously high for his sophomore feature. I can imagine. You see, and I think this is important to note here, I was very late to discovering the many pleasures of Withnail & I, which meant that, by the time I was fully integrated into the loyal fanbase, I had pretty much forgotten about this. My hazy memory seems to think it was pretty maligned and dismissed when it was released, but maybe that is just projecting, my teenaged self not yet being interested in more sophisticated and thought-provoking art back then.
Richard E. Grant plays Bagley, an advertising executive who starts to struggle with a new assignment, all about cream that helps to deal with boils. Bagley becomes so stressed that he develops a boil of his own, one that starts to talk and cause him no amount of insecurity and embarrassment, although maybe it all stems from his new-found realisation of the evils of his work. Bagley’s wife, Julia (Rachel Ward), becomes worried, but perhaps seeing her husband so vulnerable and frightened allows her to see someone who actually still knows how to feel things.
Not a film made for people who are at all wary of the concept, Bruce Robinson has made something that is a scathing attack on the world of advertising and also a comedy that skewers the notion of dinner table conversations that so often tiptoe around real problems in favour of light and inoffensive chit chat. There is no sugar coating around the bitter pill here, although Grant being as wonderful as ever definitely helps, but it’s fairly easy to be onside with something that has the central message of “advertising executives are heartless bastards who want to keep the world full of people buying stuff they don’t need”. That message hasn’t really changed in the decades since this was released, which makes this film, as crazy as it is, a surprisingly evergreen one. Similar premises have been done before, and since, but nothing has shown the ugliness and discomfort of a developing conscience in such a literal fashion.
Grant is used well here, allowed a number of moments that make use of his unsubtle and flamboyant style. Whether being cynical and heartless or weak and bullied, he is constantly watchable and entertaining, and the man can deliver a sneering insult better than any other living British actor I can think of. Ward has to convey her suffering, but also shows that she is used to being with someone she knows will throw away politeness and acceptable social graces in favour of making a strong point, and she does a very good job, particularly when you consider how easily she could have been as unpleasant as her husband. Richard Wilson has a small role, playing Grant’s boss, Jacqueline Tong is fun as a friend who is often on the receiving end of an unnecessarily angry tirade, and Tony Slattery appears often enough for viewers to say “ooooh look, it’s Tony Slattery”.
Did I enjoy How To Get Ahead In Advertising? I’m not sure that I did, and I can certainly see why it didn’t find an immediate audience when it was first released. Robinson is determined in his refusal to make anything light or optimistic, even ending the whole thing with a masterful sequence that is as wholly depressing as it is quite glorious. I loved what was being attempted though, and admire the commitment of those involved who decided not to go for any easy options.
This is a sharp, smart, bleak, and horrifying, black comedy. It’s not fun, and at times seems to be deliberately encouraging viewers to give up on it, but it’s worth your time. And it’s certainly a unique piece of work.
7/10
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