![]() ![]() In the film, our favourite boys can finally enjoy the fame and fortune that they’ve always known they deserved– in a very, er, ‘unique’ way… Learning from their cultural mishaps, we present our guide on how NOT to do Japan feat Kurupt FM. It's time to take on the Land of the Rising Sun! People Just Do Nothing: Big in Japan, in UK cinemas August 18, is a continuation of BBC’s award-winning mockumentary that has won over our hearts. ![]() When they hear the BIG news that their song is being used on a hit game show in Japan, they've made it. The boys from Kurupt FM know all about that. This is not Spinal Tap.Have you ever wanted to become famous? To have crowds of eager fans screaming your name? Fish-out-of-water vignettes, like Chabuddy G trying on a suit several sizes too small, repeatedly miss the mark by that narrow margin which separates a smile from a full-throated guffaw. People Just Do Nothing: Big In Japan is a classic underdog story that encourages us to root for Kurupt FM as the twin furies of fame and fortune weaken fraternal bonds. MC Grindah dances to Kata’s tune but the rest of the group loudly voice their opposition. Cracks appear when Taka forcefully suggests a name change from Kurupt FM to Bang Boys to appeal to the local market. ![]() The whole crew including MC Grindah, DJ Beats, DJ Steves, Chabuddy G and Decoy (Dan Sylvester) flies to the Japanese capital, where slick A&R man Taka (Ken Yamamura) takes charge. “You’ll be delivering your own royalty cheques to yourself soon,” gushes the band’s hapless manager, Chabuddy G (Asim Chaudhry), to MC Grindah. Kurupt FM is invited to Tokyo to capitalise on this unexpected brush with celebrity. Out of the blue, a madcap Japanese game show samples one of the group’s tracks, Heart Monitor Riddem, to accompany footage of contestants wiping out on an obstacle course. MC Grindah (Allan Mustafa) is a postman while DJ Beats (Chegwin) works on reception in a ten-pin bowling alley. The two creative dynamos of Kurupt FM have reluctantly surrendered lofty musical ambitions to the daily grind of paying jobs. A script credited predominantly to the main cast fails to top the charts with belly laughs and overextends a sweet romantic subplot for drug-addled DJ Steves (Steve Stamp). The flimsy plot sings to the same tune as Dreamgirls, creating friction through a scheming record executive, who intends to promote the group’s strongest personality to lead singer and relegate disgruntled, ego-bruised bandmates to the blurred background. When emotions run high, a karaoke bar becomes a predictable backdrop to apologies and reconciliations. An evening meal of freshly prepared ramen topped with a soft-boiled brown egg soaked in soy sauce and mirin is quickly dismissed in favour of American fast food chain burgers overlooking the busy Shibuya pedestrian crossings. This Is Spinal Tap and Anvil! The Story Of Anvil are clear references points for Jack Clough’s likeable culture clash comedy, which transplants the deluded UK garage crew to foreign climes to confront cultural stereotypes in mildly toe-curling fashion. “Brentford, Ipswich and now Japan!” summarises DJ Beats (Hugo Chegwin), tracking the group’s haphazard road to success in one of his to-camera interviews… People Just Do Nothing: Big In Japan (15)Īward-winning BBC mockumentary People Just Do Nothing, which chronicles the misadventures of Middlesex-based pirate radio station Kurupt FM, heads east on the big screen but almost goes south with a hit-and-miss script that feels like a cover version of funnier and smarter portraits of the cut-throat music industry. ![]()
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