There really isn't much I can say about "Bean." But, as usual, I can always try.
Rowan Atkinson, as most people know by now, has carved out a niche for himself in the arena of comedic actings that is even farther past the limits of bizarre than Jim Carrey. Unlike Carrey, Atkinson relies nearly 100% on his strange facial contortions for laughs, while his American counterpart (if I may use that term) only uses them for embellishment (I think).
Put simply, "Bean" is a comedy classic. It has come under mild critical attack for presenting a scaled-down version of Atkinson's crazy characature, but that perhaps makes it better. Many of Atkinson's video and TV comedy routines are simply him on stage, being stupid.
"Bean," the film, is considerably more than that. While all of the humor derives from the same old sources, the situational comedy of the movie adds to the mass-consumable effect.
A quick synopsis of the plot: Bean is a hapless art museum guard when, for some unknown reason, the head of the museum sends him to America as an art scholar to speak about Whistler's Mother, a painting the American museum has just purchased.
Perhaps the most entertaining scene in the entire film comes when, forced to speak in public, the typically mute star tries to actually sound erudite at a public press conference, explaining the art.
Don't miss this movie. Rowan Atkinson effectively makes Jim Carrey out-dated, and "Bean" should only be the first in a long series of financial and critical triumphs.
Grade: A