Gulliver's Travels Review (4/5)

When the trailers for Gulliver's Travels pressed the premise of a man who ends up on an island where he is a giant to its inhabitants and subsequently tells lies about his past life to gain their trust and help, many couldn't help but think that this was the sequel to School Of Rock (5/5) that was never made. Relatively speaking there's actually very little in common between the Jack Black films despite the assumption, but that doesn't make Gulliver's Travels any less interesting. Black is, as always, in his element here, playing off the other leads in the farcical manner which he has become known for, yet it comes as a surprise that the other big names including Billy Connelly, Catherine Tate and James Corden get very little screen-time other than a few ensemble scenes. It is every screenplay writer's dream to get all the stars into their film so that everyone comes to see it, but that doesn't mean anyone should do it in the real world, especially as Tate in particular has already proved her capability of providing roles that aren't comedic but serious, so to see these British icons for such a short period is a real dampener. That aside, Jason Segel (from How I Met Your Mother and Forgetting Sarah Marshall) gets much more time on the big screen, sharing the limelight with Black but owning it too. Admittedly, Gulliver's time on a dark island where his is the tiny one makes the film's climax start to feel a bit stale, but the final confrontation and sing-song ensure we don't get too bogged down in the workings of Jonathan Swift's novel (to be honest I wonder how much of the original content made it through!). If you're looking for another fun Jack Black effort, then there are far worse places to head than Gulliver's Travels, even though it doesn't reach the heights of School of Rock.