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Layer Cake
Metascore
73 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 30 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 30
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 30
  3. Negative: 0 out of 30
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  1. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Owen Gleiberman
    100
    Fast, convulsive, and densely exciting new British gangster thriller.
  2. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    88
    Craig is fascinating here as a criminal who is very smart, and finds that is not an advantage because while you might be able to figure out what another smart person is about to do, dumbos like the men he works for are likely to do anything.
  3. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Allison Benedikt
    88
    Don't let the fast-and-loose vibe fool you: Right up to its operatic finale, this is one tight one last job.
  4. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Steven Rea
    88
    Things get a little tricky by the end, but it's the sort of trickery that's immensely satisfying.
  5. Charlotte Observer
    Reviewed by: Lawrence Toppman
    88
    Doesn't reveal all its layers until you've taken the last bite.
  6. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Ray Bennett
    80
    Smartly put together, with interesting characters and caustic wit.
  7. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Manohla Dargis
    80
    The newest in British gangland entertainment and the tastiest in years.
  8. Time
    Reviewed by: Richard Schickel
    80
    Layer Cake is a treat--especially if your taste in desserts is devil's food.
  9. Variety
    Reviewed by: Leslie Felperin
    80
    There's a proper lived-in believability about Layer Cake's depiction of how the worlds of the rich, the criminal and the criminally rich intersect.
  10. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Desson Thomson
    80
    It's a stylish and classic gangster saga about the clashing of rival empires.
  11. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Stephen Hunter
    80
    The director Vaughn has a flair not merely for action and ambiance but also for character.
  12. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: J.R. Jones
    80
    A colorful cast whose combined energy lifts the story off the ground.
  13. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marc Savlov
    78
    Layer Cake is suffused with a stately sense of menace and a sort of doomed existential suave.
  14. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Peter Debruge
    75
    It's like "Lock, Stock" as filtered through the mind of David Mamet, with Craig as the suave middleman holding it all together.
  15. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Jack Mathews
    75
    Laced with flashbacks and stylistic tics, but it never loses its forward momentum, and to the last shot, it avoids predictability.
  16. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Kyle Smith
    75
    This is a smart, vivid, thrillingly real gangster picture that nevertheless resembles many others.
  17. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Mick LaSalle
    75
    A crime drama in a special class.
  18. USA Today
    Reviewed by: Mike Clark
    75
    There's a lot here to feed crime-fiction enthusiasts.
  19. Premiere
    Reviewed by: Glenn Kenny
    75
    It's hilarious, and genuinely cool.
  20. Baltimore Sun
    Reviewed by: Michael Sragow
    75
    Cheeky, brass-knuckles British crime film.
  21. Film Threat
    Reviewed by: Chris Barsanti
    70
    The writing is crisp and deeply layered, and the filmmakers gave themselves a rich array of actors to work with.
  22. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Nathan Rabin
    70
    The always-dependable and chameleon-like Craig has the chops and substance for that kind of film, but Vaughn prefers to keep matters brisk and superficial.
  23. Dallas Observer
    Reviewed by: Bill Gallo
    70
    By the end, you may be exhausted by the effort of trying to unravel the thing, but you may also be taken by the power of its spell. This is a movie that compels you to watch.
  24. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Crust
    70
    A sleek, effective entertainment that is a refreshing respite from the slick emptiness of recent American crime dramas.
  25. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Maitland McDonagh
    60
    The result is so intoxicating, it hardly matters that you've heard it all before.
  26. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Shawn Levy
    58
    Lively, cheeky, dense and, ultimately, too flip, clever and torturously twisted to be fully engrossing.
  27. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Paula Nechak
    58
    Craig's got the stuff but the ending of this cake is soggy for its protagonist and audience.
  28. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Wesley Morris
    50
    A lot of the problem is that the picture's protagonist is both naive and foul.
  29. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
    Reviewed by: Rick Groen
    50
    One of those crime flicks besotted with its own plot.
  30. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Michael Atkinson
    50
    What's abundantly clear is how far this kind of moviemaking has come from any knowledge of real criminal life; it's a geek's ineffectual daydream of mayhem.
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User Reviews

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User Score
7.7 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 47 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 25 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 28
  3. Negative: 1 out of 28
  1. Justinavery7074
    7
    Somewhat great, but a great predecessor to Matthew Vaughn's hollywood masterpieces. Once again, you get to see the pure brilliance and genius of Matthew Vaughn. I **** love that talented bastard.… Full Review »
  2. WesM
    10
    The ultimate synthesis of recent British crime classis; the seriousness, characterization and aesthetics of Sexy Beast and the loopy, multilayered plotting and style of Lock Stock... and Snatch. Very highly recommended.… Full Review »
  3. JackT.
    10
    The Greatest Gangster Thriller I have Ever Seen
See all user reviews »