Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (Adam McKay, 2004) Review

I figured a review for this film only seemed appropriate since the teaser trailer for the sequel was released a few days ago. With this in mind, let's dive into Anchorman. While it's obvious that Will Ferrell is a comedy actor so you can already guess what to expect with this film. Despite that, there is actual a serious message that this film is trying to promote and honestly, it holds up!


Set in San Diego during the 1970s, Anchorman focuses on a broadcasting station with Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell) as the lead anchorman. He is accompanied by his entourage of Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), the on-location reporter, Champ Kind (David Koechner), the sports guy and Brick Tamland (Steve Carell), the weather reporter. They are the biggest thing in San Diego but that all changes when their boss Ed Harkin (Fred Willard) introduces a female reporter, Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate), into the company. Burgundy's career is in jeopardy as the audience prefers Veronica over him. So basically he has to win back his audience from Veronica with the help of his entourage.


Seeing as this is a Will Ferrell film, I might as well talk about the comedy. At first it seems like the humour is going to be the typical "Ferrell comedy" in the sense that it's going to be overblown and over the top, even nonsensical at times. Well...it's not. At all. There's actually some well written comedy here that all the protagonists have. Especially Brick considering he is arguably the most popular character as a result of his stupidity. There are very memorable lines and scenes. Probably the most memorable scene is the epic fight between all the different news anchor teams.


Anchorman has a moral message that is surprisingly well done. The main theme of this film is the idea of women in the workplace. A female anchorman was almost unheard of in the 1970s. With Veronica's introduction, it's painstakingly obvious that Burgundy and his crew are less that welcoming. Veronica's appeal towards the diegetic audience is the result of her gender which Burgundy can't accept. It's a clear message about sexism in the workplace and therefore it can have a sense of reference despite being set in the 1970s.


All in all, Anchorman is a hilarious film that still manages to present a very clear message. There are some very memorable moments/scenes/lines that really make this film stand out. I am glad I got this one out of the way considering that the sequel is on the way, yes I am going to review that as soon as possible...which is a while. 2013 I believe. Well that's the review done. Starting tomorrow I will be reviewing the two Men In Black film in order to prepare for the third instalment. See you then.


You stay classy San Diego.


Verdict:
8/10
One of Will Ferrell's funniest films that has a surprising moral message

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