***** Rating

Learn how to really rub people the wrong way




British journalist Sidney Young (Simon Pegg) wants nothing more than to expose celebrities as being only human too. Therefore, he takes his chance when Clayton Harding (Jeff Bridges), the editor of upscale magazine Sharps invites Sidney to work for him in New York City.

Once in the Big Apple, the Brit abroad has to discover, that things work rather differently on the other side of the ocean. Managing to irritate most of the people he works with on his first day and tackling everything with a rather British approach (“In London, everybody hates journalists, and we don’t care!”), his time at the magazine seems doomed. Only colleague Alison (Kirsten Dunst) learns to tolerate his talent for alienating people and tries to save Sidney from embarrassments.

All Sidney wants to do is write gritty articles about the shallowness of the celebrity world – a world he desperately tries to be a part of. However, he soon realises that this will not possible if he stays true to himself.

How to lose friends and alienate people is a great comedy about clichés and the “Brits Abroad” attitude. Simon Pegg, known for films such as Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead is brilliant in the role of sarcastic, idealistic and British-to-the-core Sidney Young.

This movie is a must-see and laughs are guaranteed – even if British humour is usually not for you!