In the Loop
Metascore
83 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 31 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 30 out of 31
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 31
  3. Negative: 0 out of 31
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  1. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Mick LaSalle
    100
    The language is brilliant, and the laugh lines come so quickly that you'd probably have to watch the movie twice to get them all.
  2. NPR
    Reviewed by: Bob Mondello
    90
    The performances are explosively funny, from Hollander's increasingly bewildered and way-out-of-his-depth Simon to Chris Addison's hapless PR fledgling. But the star is Peter Capaldi.
  3. Rolling Stone
    Reviewed by: Peter Travers
    88
    Laugh you will, loud and often. In the Loop deserves to be a sleeper hit. The whole cast is stellar. And it proves that smart and funny can exist in the same movie, even in summer.
  4. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Michael Phillips
    88
    While director Armando Iannucci's brand of satire -- just plausible enough to be painful -- isn't for all tastes, it's a little bit of heaven to hear screen characters spew such eloquently vicious bile.
  5. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Rene Rodriguez
    88
    The movie is absolutely hilarious, a satire as brisk and fleet as a farce and as profane as a convention of Tony Montana impersonators.
  6. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Lou Lumenick
    88
    In the Loop is certainly the smartest and funniest movie inspired by the Iraq war.
  7. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Ty Burr
    88
    As a ranking cabinet minister in the brutally funny political satire In the Loop, actor Peter Capaldi unfurls dazzling verbal ribbons of the foulest language imaginable, thunderbolts of vulgarity that carry the force of precision carpet-bombing.
  8. ReelViews
    Reviewed by: James Berardinelli
    88
    Dancing along a line just shy of the edge of brilliance, In the Loop possesses an incisive, take-no-prisoners comedic style that offers plenty of solid laughs while making a point about the stupidity, selfishness, and lack of awareness that exists within the highest echelons of government.
  9. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Lisa Schwarzbaum
    91
    The chattering smarty-pants who ran the U.S. government on "The West Wing" are slow talkers compared with the motormouthed and hilariously imperfect power elite in the brainy British comedy In the Loop.
  10. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Shawn Levy
    83
    One of those should-I-laugh-or-cry satires.
  11. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Robert Wilonsky
    90
    Zooming back and forth between London and D.C., In the Loop hasn't any real plot -- it plays like a rather brilliant Brit-com stretched over 100 minutes, a collection of anecdotes and incidents.
  12. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Melissa Anderson
    90
    Not to detract from the pleasure of watching the consistently excellent actors, who enhance the dialogue's bite with their body language, but the script of In the Loop is so rich that it could work as a radio play.
  13. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: A.O. Scott
    90
    A sharply written, fast-talking, almost dementedly articulate satire on modern statecraft.
  14. Slate
    Reviewed by: Dana Stevens
    90
    Britain's diplomatic corps may be as clueless and impotent as In the Loop suggests, but British comedians are fully capable of taking over the world.
  15. Variety
    Reviewed by: Dennis Harvey
    90
    Intelligent political satire this expertly acted is nothing to sneeze at.
  16. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Philip Kennicott
    90
    Tremendous fun at times, especially in its vicious power plays and betrayals. But it has no redeeming value beyond entertainment.
  17. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Keith Phipps
    91
    In The Loop floats above its chaotic world on wave after wave of beautifully profane dialogue.
  18. Christian Science Monitor
    Reviewed by: Peter Rainer
    100
    Hands down the funniest movie I've seen all year and also the smartest.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.9 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 68 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 29
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 29
  3. Negative: 5 out of 29
  1. avt_12
    10
    anyone who likes to indulge in the lighter side of politics will LOVE this movie. those giving bad reviews are simply too thick to understand!
  2. Nesbitt10
    8
    The pace is fast and the approach is uncensored. "In the Loop" conveys a sense of instability and speed. The dialogue comes in cascades of exuberant comic language. Characters indulge in frantic and absurd monologues. The language is brilliant, and the laugh lines come so quickly that your going to have to watch the movie twice to start to pick them up. Although concealed beneath the splendor of comedy is a vision of self-serving people, who are self-absorbed and unable to see past their own interests.
    The United States and Britain are rushing to war, in this pointed British satire, and everyone in government, on both sides of the Atlantic, is scrambling for position. Quietly underlying these amusing interactions and laughs is the implication that the Americans are wealthy and entitled, and that the Brit's are merely junior partners.
    The movie follows a litany of characters but mainly centers around Simon (Tom Hollander) as he struggles to maintain his balance. Simon unintentionally refers to war with the Middle East as "unforeseeable", then tries to correct what he has been told is a terrible gaffe. His attempt to smooth things over only makes things worse, when he proclaims that Britain "must be ready to climb the mountain of conflict." Because he is against the war, he comes into contact with American undersecretary (Mimi Kennedy), and a pacifist American general, played by James Gandollfini. At the same time, Simon has to appease his own government's apoplectic communications director Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi), whose performance is priceless-boarding on legendary.
    "In the Loop" is uncompromising in its speed and audacity. Even among the moderate characters, there seems to be hardly any awareness of the true cost of war, loss of life, and what this all entails. These functionaries are lost in the fog of government, incapable of seeing past their petty grievances and career concerns. What a terrifying thought that this is possibly closer to reality than we care to think of it. The film is adapted from the critically acclaimed BBC series "The Thick of It."    … Full Review »
  3. misterdog
    5
    If your idea of being entertained, is listening to a 100 minute long saga of people cursing and shouting on eachother, you are better of with the jerry springer boxset. Yes the dialogues are snap, but they loose their edge very quickly because of all the potty-mouthing. And the concept is not very new either as political games and their hypocrisy behind the scenes, were already portrayed in good movies such as wag the dog, which is far more entertaining.

    I feel like i wasted 2 euros on this (bought it cheap), even tough i'm a big fan of Tony Soprano...    … Full Review »
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