An absolute waste of money

It isn't all that great, actually. Really cheesy and very predicable of how certain scenes are gonna turn play out. However, I guess that's the charm of it all, because I would consider this one of my guilty pleasures.

A movie that not only functions as a solid scarefest but a razor-sharp satire.

One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.

This is a satirical parody of news and current affairs television programmes. Chris Morris, Steve Coogan, Rebecca Front, Doon Mackichan, Patrick Marber and David Schneider play various characters.There are six episodes. They were shown in January and February 1994 on BBC Two.

'Portillo's face felt like guts says girl'I'm talking bang! I'm talking guns, I'm talking people like Uzi MC, the Blood Rap Movement, Herman the Tosser... how do you feel when young people are presented with the sort of stuff that they're churning out? What, if someone listens to Herman the Tosser? Agh.-I think there are very many young people who are turned off by that violence, by that sexism, by that racism and by that homophobia.Are you levelling all those accusations at Herman the Tosser?-No I'm not, Herman the Tosser is not someone who's invaded my own particular consciousness, although he has clearly invaded yours and is a concern-It sounds to me, it sounds to meIt sounds to me too.-it sounds to me a rather unpleasant nameUnpleasant name.-but he may be a delightful man-Man.-in personTHIS IS THE NEEEWS!

Although similar to Brass Eye, the difference with The Day Today was that it wasn't meant to be taken real, rather it was a satire of news shows and, I may say, a rather brilliant satire at that. It is rare (and not something I like) that I disagree with prolific reviewer Theo Robertson but on this title the only thing I agree with was the sentiment that he "don't get it". To me The Day Today (along with Brass Eye) captures Chris Morris at his best and sharpest, with sterling work from satire master Armando Iannucci. Together they have produced an exaggerated news show that has enough in common with reality to be recognisable, is exaggerated enough to be hilarious but yet again doesn't seem a million miles from the truth. The fact that the rolling news coverage is starting to get closer and closer to being just like The Day Today just shows how bang on it was and just how acutely the writers saw the direction that television news coverage was taking.This can be seen most obviously in the things like the silly computer graphics, the simplification of the story, the forced interplay between presenters, pointless contributions from the public, the crazy weather forecasts and the tired clichés of the sports presenter but it is also in pretty much every part of the show. Those expecting consistent belly laughs might be disappointed because, although they are present, the main joy is the consistent invention and the regular hitting of ripe targets. Morris would also make good targets of the media with Brass Eye but he is just as good in other regards here, linking his weird sense of humour with a firm structure (something that was lacking in, say, Jam).The different elements of the show all work together. Coogan's Partridge is so on-target that he struggled to completely get out of the shadow of his character for many years. He does great with the sports clichés and produces some very funny moments. Front is well suited to the material and looks well in the part of serious but "warm at the flick of the switch" like so many female news presenters. Schneider is helped by his funny looks and he produces the goods here as he regularly does. Marber is less memorable but his scenes with Morris are funny.Overall this is a very funny satire on news shows that hit the mark then and, to the shame of news shows, is more on target than ever. Within the show's structure, Morris' sense of humour is controlled and is better for it as the show is both recognisable but yet also exaggerated and hilarious. Easily stands alongside Brass Eye as a fantastic piece of satire.

The Day Today was NOT trying to fool veiwers. It was a satirical portrayal of the american style of news reporting, where the producers value ratings above the truth. Sadly, this is what UK news is becoming.It's not really a news spoof. It is a sketch show like Monty Python's Flying Circus was. The sketches are held together by the news format. It is a reminder of the happy days of the BBC, when the suits took chances, and they paid off like this did.