Rating: 
Summary: I've seen this movie over and over and still love it.
Review: I saw this movie years ago, and since then have probably rented it 5 or 6 times to share it with friends. I love this movie. It has that crazy British humour which is very unexpected, and shocking. I love dark, funny, bizarre stories. If you like any of that, you should like this one too. I've finally decided to buy this one, to save myself from renting it again and again.
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Summary: Brilliant and Hilarious Dark Comedy, English Style!
Review: If dark comedy is your forte, do not miss this witty and outrageously funny offering from Hand Made Films! Richard E. Grant portrays Dennis Bagley, a brilliant young advertising executive whose downfall is caused by his latest glamorous account: pimple cream. He desperately needs a clever new ad campaign, but his mind is one big blank. Despite support from his lovely wife (Rachel Ward), Dennis cracks. His unblemished career is about to break out in chaos, just like the annoying pimple that has broken out on the side of his neck. To save his sanity, Dennis quits his job. But his neuroses, like his strange pimple, keep growing. Soon, what ensues is a hilarious chain of events that has the viewer wondering who's really in charge of Dennis' life! This movie is one of many by this-then relatively obscure English film company, that is as well made and it is well cast, as it is outrageously funny! Not to be missed by fans of dark comedy, this film is sure to find it's way into your private library. An excellent comedy, you can enjoy over and over again! Don't miss it!
Rating: 
Summary: Definitely British
Review: If you like British humour, this is definitely it. I was rolling off the sofa laughing, because this film is full of crazy ideas and obnoxious British-ness. You will feel with the wife, Julia, as her husband gets more and more absurd due to a pimple on his neck talking to him, and you will love him for his funky approach to life. I had rented this video before, by accident (it bears a completely different name in Germany, which is no way related to the English one), and it has become one of the movies you'll put on if you have friends over who ask for something seriously stupid.
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Summary: Its a talking boil
Review: Its a movie about a talking boil....what more do you need to know?
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Summary: DEAD RINGERS
Review: Nothing exciting about this Criterion release : english subtitles, liner notes and a theatrical trailer, that's all. It seems that the HOW TO GET AHEAD IN ADVERTISING DVD release was Criterion price to pay to Handmade Films in order to be allowed to release Bruce Robinson's first movie, the cult classic WITHNAIL AND I. Holy Mysteries of the movie deals !HOW TO GET AHEAD IN ADVERTISING is not a bad movie, it has even great moments principally due to the terrific performance of Richard E. Grant as Bagley, a young talented executive in the advertising business. Suffering from a nervous breakdown turning soon into schizophreny, Bagley develops a strange boil hiding an alter ego willing to take his place. This horror movie cliché, with the usual special effects involved, gives director Bruce Robinson the opportunity to develop certain ideas about the world we live in. Television, advertised products, show-business have little by little killed our critical sense. We don't know anymore the difference between reality and the lies we have to absorb all day long from our TV sets. These are interesting themes but the satire, in my opinion, often falls short and doesn't have the acuity required by this peculiar genre. A DVD zone manipulation.
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Summary: Witty, Satirical, Brilliant, and Fun!
Review: Richard E. Grant as Bagley brings to the film both his best and most outrageous performance. As the slick advertising salesman, Bagley is the cold-hearted business man who would see his own mother lose all her teeth if he thought it would sell more denture cream. The brilliant opening scene has him announcing that we want to sell them 30% less [of fat] and 20% more [of nutrition]; they are selling an image and idea, not a product! Bagley begins to second guess his profession and when the idea of having to come up with a boil cream begins to make his conscience ill, he opts to quit in pursuit of higher ideals. It is then, that the supernatural takes over, and Bagley gets a boil on his neck that he believes has begun to turn into a face, causing him to go utterly insane to the horror of his wife who sees nothing but the boil. The insanity multiplies and the boil becomes Bagley's evil advertising alter-ego, and the insanity delves into the depths of all that is great in British black humour. The boil-alter-ego finally takes over the reformed Bagley identity, and Bagley becomes much worse than he'd ever been. The script is poignant, if not a little bit preachy on the evils of advertising. But Richard E. Grant gives his heart and soul to make the character fully dimensional and incredibly funny. His insanity is put in perfect perspective by his wife, played sublimely by Rachel Ward, who is as supportive and understanding as she can to a husband who seems to have gone over the brink. For the originality, commentary, wittiness, acting, quotable dialogue, and pure insanity, this has been one of my favourite movies ever. It's no Citizen Kane (do people really like that movie, anyway! ), but it is without a doubt a must-see, just for the experience!
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Summary: Criterion finds a hidden gem!
Review: This film might not be for everyone. Especially if you have trouble breathing. And you need to enjoy British humor when it's most insane. The part where Richard E. Grant looks in the mirror during one scene I actually heard screams in the theatre. I have never forgot what came next. I doubt that I could. Too bad this isn't as well known a film as it should be but with a beautiful DVD that only Criterion can make maybe more will experience this beauty of a film? It's really a classic that deserves a place right in between the Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Time Bandits.
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Summary: HILARIOUS!
Review: This has to be one of the funniest & most bizarre examples of mad dogs & Englishmen. Richard E. Grant is sublime.
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Summary: Very funny but also weird.
Review: This review is for the Criterion Collection DVD edition of the film.
"How to Get Ahead in Advertising" in one of the most original comedies I have seen. The humor ranges from the shocking, to the surrealistic, to slapstick.
The film is about Dennis Bagley, an advertising agent trying to come up with a slogan for a skin ointment that removes boils.
He is so stressed from time pressure that he grows a boil on his right shoulder. Then one day when he is asleep two talking cartoon birds fly put of his chimney and into his TV set. This marks when fantasy becomes reality. The boil begins growing a face and begins talking! Things get realy bad after this but I do not want to ruin the surprise.
The acting in this film is better and is well-rehearsed. The film does have much strong language earning it an R rating. Watch the movie yourself before deciding to let your teenage children watch it.
The only special feature on the DVD is a theatrical trailer.
It is currently out of print and ususally sells for more than twice it's original retail price. The DVD was taken out of print more recently so more copies were made of this release than other out of print Criterion DVD's. Bootlegs of this are more rare and the film has been re-released on a non-criterion edition by MGM home video.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant and Inspired
Review: Well Bruce Robinson has done it again. After engaging us with classic 'Withnail and I' he has produced a prophetic film that says more about the way we live and those that cynically take advantage of the consumerist treadmill than 'Fight Club'. The passionate dialogues in the screenplay give an insight into Robinson himself and his view of where the global society is headed. The performance of Grant as Bagnel, the schizophrenic advertising executive, is a masterpiece. Rachel Ward's performance is a little wooden but the rest of the cast are able to carry her along with them convincingly enough. Let me warn you. Don't watch this if you're not prepared for it to make a lasting and life changing impact on your psyche. You'll never view an advertisement the same after seeing this picture. You may even find yourself with your head in a cardboard box making a video on global warming and carbon sinks -just like Bagnel. Get the local school to do a amateur production or even a rock eisteddfod on 'How to Get Ahead..'. Considering this was made in 1989 the messages are brilliantly insightful and more relevant given recent global events. A modern classic.
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