LA Without A Map review

Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

Johnny Depp's hilarious cameo (dispensing advice from a Dead Man poster the hero keeps on his wall) is the main reason to catch this amiable, if aimless, comedy from Finnish helmer Mika Kaurismäki.

Adapted from Richard Rayner's novel, it tells of a dour Scottish undertaker (Tennant) who quits Bradford to chase a kooky American tourist (Shaw) all the way to LA. There he endures a catalogue of humiliations as he rents a room from Vincent Gallo's dopehead hipster, gets a job cleaning pools and tries to sell his first novel (Uzi Suicide) to a clutch of studio bigwigs.

The combination of self-deprecating British humour and US indie street cred doesn't quite gel, and Tennant makes an annoying protagonist (he gets beaten up three times, and deserves every pummelling). But compensations come in the form of Julie Delpy's giggly waitress and Amanda Plummer as a sex-starved Hollywood harpy.

More info

Available platformsMovie
Less

The Total Film team are made up of the finest minds in all of film journalism. They are: Editor Jane Crowther, Deputy Editor Matt Maytum, Reviews Ed Matthew Leyland, News Editor Jordan Farley, and Online Editor Emily Murray. Expect exclusive news, reviews, features, and more from the team behind the smarter movie magazine.