State of Play
State of Play Image
See the trailer
Metascore
64 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 36 Critics What's this?

User Score
7.3 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 83 Ratings

Your Score
0 out of 10
Rate this:
  • Starring: Ben Affleck, Rachel McAdams, Russell Crowe
  • Summary: Handsome, unflappable U.S. Congressman Stephen Collins is the future of his political party: an honorable appointee who serves as the chairman of a committee overseeing defense spending. All eyes are upon the rising star to be his party's contender for the upcoming presidential race. Until his research assistant/mistress is brutally murdered and buried secrets come tumbling out. McAffrey has the dubious fortune of both an old friendship with Collins and a ruthless editor, Cameron, who has assigned him to investigate. As he and partner Della try to uncover the killer's identity, McAffrey steps into a cover-up that threatens to shake the nation's power structures. And in a town of spin-doctors and wealthy politicos, he will discover one truth: when billions are at stake, no one's integrity, love or life is ever safe. (Universal Pictures)… Expand

Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 36
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 36
  3. Negative: 1 out of 36
  1. Premiere
    Reviewed by: Rob Calvert
    100
    This is a smart script. There is a wealth of twists, but none of them have to beat you over the head.
  2. Film Threat
    Reviewed by: Scott Mendelson
    80
    It is a refreshingly traditional star-driven thriller.
  3. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: David Edelstein
    60
    It's tricky, it's surprising, and it's largely faithful to the original mini-series, but in context it's a nonevent. It's like a time bomb that's never dismantled but never explodes. The movie is good enough that the ending leaves you … not angry, exactly. Unfulfilled.
  4. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Kyle Smith
    0
    State of Play is bordered by the states of absurdity and cliché.

See all 36 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 25 out of 32
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 32
  3. Negative: 0 out of 32
  1. CRL
    10
    This movie is exceptional, and even with its crazy twists it manages to entertain and mystify for its entire running time. The characters are amazingly acted, and most of them knock 'real' straight out of the ballpark, while Russell Crowe delivers an Oscar-worthy performance. Well-written and executed on all fronts, State of Play is a movie I will definitely come back to time and time again.… Expand
  2. Compi24
    8
    With a tightly-wound story that never ceases its flow of intrigue, a delightfully passionate ensemble cast that impresses while it entertains, and a solid directorial foundation from Kevin Macdonald, "State Of Play" makes for a worthy addition to the "journalism thriller" sub-genre.… Expand
  3. Steve
    5
    Ninety-five percent of this movie is a smart, engrossing, well-acted thriller. I wasn't crazy about how it was shot -- too much washed out color and hand-held camera for this type of story -- but the script was tight and the performances good. Then came the ending. Without giving away what happens, let me just say that it's hard to imagine how a film this big makes it through all the studio execs and test screenings without somebody realizing that the ending simply doesn't make sense. I spent a good amount of time trying to go back through the events and figure out how the various characters knew what they supposedly did, but it doesn't come together. Then I went online and found that it doesn't make sense to anyone else either. It's really too bad, because this could have been a great movie if they'd just left it alone. It didn't even need the extra twist which wound up killing the overall experience.… Expand
  4. cameronmorewood
    4
    State of Play is a sloppy, incoherent thriller that's too long and seems to forget the fact the its playing to an audience, and rather just drones on.

See all 32 User Reviews

Trailers

Current Movie Releases

Full List »
  1. Star Trek Into Darkness
    Metascore: 73
  2. Iron Man 3
    Metascore: 62
  3. 42
    Metascore: 62
  4. Evil Dead (2013)
    Metascore: 57
  5. The Croods
    Metascore: 55
  6. The Great Gatsby
    Metascore: 55
  7. Oblivion
    Metascore: 54
  8. Pain & Gain
    Metascore: 43
  9. G.I. Joe: Retaliation
    Metascore: 41
  10. Olympus Has Fallen
    Metascore: 41
  11. The Host
    Metascore: 35
  12. Tyler Perry's Temptation
    Metascore: 27
  13. Scary Movie 5
    Metascore: 11
All Current Movies »