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Steve Coogan, Lena Headey, Stephen Dillane, Om Puri, Steven Waddington ... see more see more... , Jenny Agutter , Omar Sharif , Ben Miller , Emma Gilmour , Iain Mitchell , James Smith , Susan Jane Tanner

British television comic Steve Coogan made his first bid for a big-screen career in this comedy, in which he plays Simon Garden, a singularly inept parole officer who has not had terribly good luck wi... read more read more...th his clients -- after many years on the job, only three of the former prisoners he's been looking after have avoided returning to a life of crime. Garden is transferred from his post in Blackpool to a new assignment in Manchester, and it isn't long before he finds himself in hot water. Garden happened to be on hand when Burton (Stephen Dellane), a crooked cop, murdered a drug dealer with whom he had been involved in a cocaine deal. Realizing he's in trouble, Burton rearranges the evidence so that Garden looks like the killer. A surveillance camera captured Burton's crime on tape, and now Garden must get his hands on the tape in order to clear his name. However, Burton has cleverly stashed the tape in a top security bank vault to keep it away from Garden, so the parole officer must stage a break-in to collect the evidence -- and he chooses as his accomplices George (Om Puri), Jeff (Steven Waddington), and Colin (Ben Miller), the three parolees who've stayed out of trouble until now. The Parole Officer also features Emma Williams as a former associate of Burton's who ends up helping out Garden, and cameos from Omar Sharif and Jenny Agutter. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Flixster Users

67% liked it

5,998 ratings

Critics

67% liked it

6 critics

R, 1 hr. 33 min.

Directed by: John Duigan

Release Date: January 1, 2001

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Flixster Reviews (289)

  • FiLmCrAzY
    November 23, 2009
    FiLmCrAzY
    i like it this is a proper british comedy steve coogan is the parole officer and needs to break into a bank to retrieve the tape that proves a curupt cop murder a bloke but the only people helping him are idiots but along with some help is emma (lena headey) who ends up liking hi... read morem in a more personannal level but its good and funny!
  • jabcdef
    February 15, 2008
    jabcdef
    It's got a few funny moments - But overall nothing special.
  • husky10000years
    January 4, 2008
    husky10000years
    Such a funny film and one of Steve Coogan's good films. Steve Coogan plays loveable loser Simon Garden who is rubbish at his job as a parole officer.
  • StefanoEarnest
    March 15, 2012
    StefanoEarnest
    Steve Coogan is comedic gold, but "The Parole Officer" is a completely sub-par film. Granted, Coogan has a couple of funny moments here and there, but for the most part, the film is formulaic, boring, and decidedly unfunny. Not a good start for Coogan in the business.
  • DrLappos
    July 12, 2007
    DrLappos
    Wasnt a big Coogan fn until this but he is really good, as is the film.

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Critic Reviews

Pablo Villaca
August 11, 2004
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena

Coogan é um comediante excepcional - assim, mesmo trabalhando com um roteiro mediano (de sua própria autoria), consegue arrancar algumas boas risadas.

Ian Waldron-Mantgani
October 15, 2001
Ian Waldron-Mantgani, UK Critic

It's watchable.

Caroline Westbrook
August 10, 2001
Caroline Westbrook, Empire Magazine

Combining all the best elements of home-grown rom-coms and gangster capers, this breathes fresh life into both genres. Full Review

Neil Smith
August 9, 2001
Neil Smith, BBC

An intermittently hilarious vehicle for British TV star Steve Coogan. Full Review

Derek Elley
March 26, 2009
Derek Elley, Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Emanuel Levy
July 26, 2005
Emanuel Levy, EmanuelLevy.Com

No review available.

Matthew Turner
October 30, 2002
Matthew Turner, ViewLondon

Click to read the article Full Review

September 28, 2006
Sight and Sound

Click to read the article Full Review

Derek Adams
June 24, 2006
Derek Adams, Time Out

Click to read the article Full Review

Christopher Tookey
December 15, 2003
Christopher Tookey, Daily Mail [UK]

Click to read the article Full Review

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    • Detective-Inspector Burton: I won't lay a finger on you. But you'll go to prison. And when those nonces and those perverts get hold of a clever boy like you - and I'll make sure they do - they'll be queueing up round the block. You're going to end up with an arsehole like a clown's pocket.
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The Parole Officer Trivia

  • In "The Opposite of Sex", who does Bill end up dating?  Answer »
  • I've been a "man of the house", an army officer, an alien chaser, a parole officer and obsessed with catching a certain fugitive.Who am I?   Answer »
  • In the movie "Sin City", what is the name of Marv's parole officer?  Answer »
  • In "Reservoir Dogs", the name of Mr Blonde's parole officer is Seymour Scagnetti. Scagnetti is also the name of the cop in which 1994 movie, written by Quentin Tarantino?   Answer »
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