Interview

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

Any doubts as to whether Sienna Miller is a gifted actress should be laid to rest by Interview.

New York Magazine David Edelstein

I’ve sat through so many claustrophobic examples of the genre I forgot how exhilarating, how pure a great one could be. Interview is a great one--electric as theater and cinema.

Christian Science Monitor Peter Rainer

The back-and-forth between the performers is tensely choreographed, and Buscemi does a good job opening up the action, which mostly takes place in a Manhattan loft.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin

The Interview is mannered, implausible, and stagy, but queasily compelling all the same.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

I found Interview kind of fascinating, especially in the ways that Buscemi and Miller make their performances into commentaries on the types of characters they play.

San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle

Despite the fact that both protagonists are equally appalling, the screenplay seems to have a soft spot for the woman. However, this doesn't take away from the fun of watching the two characters tear each other to pieces.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

The first of three planned remakes of Dutch films by the late Theo van Gogh, Steve Buscemi's Interview takes the most unnatural act in human intercourse - the celebrity interview - and makes an explosively funny two-character psychodrama out of it.

New York Post Kyle Smith

Some bits are too stagy, but for the most part this long night feels like an interview that could have actually happened. Miller is so good - dumb, smart, wounded, wounding, a lollipop of sweet poison that you'd buy every day until it killed you - that you feel you not only understand her but all actresses.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

The film's emotional claustrophobia may not be for everyone.

Portland Oregonian Marc Mohan

While the subject matter is certainly American enough, it seems possible the original had a bit more depth.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

Stick with it for Miller’s gutsy tour de force and the kick of watching Buscemi, as actor and filmmaker, turn an experiment into a mesmerizing battle of wills.

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

The film is enjoyable as a performance piece, an eminently watchable contest between two actors at the top of their games.

The New York Times Manohla Dargis

Vaporous and chilled to freezing, Interview lacks a single honest moment, but it does have plenty of diverting ones.

Variety Dennis Harvey

Afforded a comparatively rare chance to stretch out in a complex lead role, Buscemi is excellent.

Los Angeles Times Carina Chocano

For a film that unfolds mostly in a single location, Interview manages not to feel like a stage piece. But the premise, which may have worked in Holland, gets a little lost in the American translation.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

In the end, sharp writing and terrific performances can't compensate for the fact that the back-and-forth between a sour scribe and a manipulative celebrity doesn't amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world.

Boston Globe Ty Burr

One comes away from Interview exhausted and a little unclean, entertained by the acting equivalent of a pit bull fight but needing a hose-down. The movie confirms that in every relationship "there are winners and losers." True enough, but for the audience this one's a draw.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

Interview has its moments but they can't prevent it from feeling a little long winded and unsatisfying.

Film Threat Jamie Tipps

To their credit, Miller and Buscemi engage the audience’s interest in what is essentially an extended conversation for an extraordinarily long time.

Empire William Thomas

Stagey filming aside, this is a sharp and controlled study of celebrity obsession.

Village Voice Jim Ridley

The result, though anchored mostly to a single set cleverly sectioned by hammocks, curtains, and a kitchen bar, is the least concrete and most artificial of Buscemi's films.

Salon.com Andrew O'Hehir

Whatever we may make of van Gogh's life and death, Buscemi's talky, stagey Interview -- the first of three van Gogh adaptations planned by American actor-directors -- doesn't make much of a case for him as an important or original artist.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Sean Axmaker

Buscemi gets a fine performance from Miller and plays his part with a murky mix of self-pity, opportunism and arrogance. A few scenes crackle with their intensity. The rest of it wallows in glib acrimony and cynicism.

Washington Post Desson Thomson

Unfortunately, Buscemi's film conveys the spirit of its source material but doesn't make a satisfying transmogrification out of its homage.

Wall Street Journal Joanne Kaufman

Both in its content and production values, Interview has the feel of an undergraduate project -- all intensity, no never mind. Pierre is such a weasel, Katya is such a narcissist and the outcome seems so pre-determined, it's hard to care whose belt gets the notch. The adroit performances of Buscemi and Miller almost make it matter.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Kamal AL-Solaylee

The end result of this showcase for Buscemi's writing, acting and directing chops is so uneven and mixed in small details and overall tone that it's anybody's guess if it's one for the Oscars or the Razzies next year.

Chicago Reader Jonathan Rosenbaum

The good direction and performances seem wasted on limited material; despite a few interesting twists and ambiguities, the main revelation--that the reporter is an insufferable snob--doesn't seem worth the 84 minutes devoted to spelling it out.

USA Today Claudia Puig

Director Steve Buscemi is not to be faulted for his filmmaking or acting skills, but as co-writer he could have done better than the false-sounding dialogue.

Austin Chronicle Josh Rosenblatt

Buscemi and Miller do their best with what they have, finding at least some small redemption in two dislikable characters written into an improbable situation, but emotional honesty in the service of nonsense is still nonsense, no matter how many scabs it manages to pick at.