Imperium
Lionsgate Premiere | Release Date: August 19, 2016 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
68
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
4
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperAug 18, 2016
Imperium is a well-spun, tight thriller, thanks in no small part to Radcliffe’s excellent, sharply focused performance. Read full review
80
The New York TimesNeil GenzlingerAug 18, 2016
Nate’s journey is used primarily to show us the variations in extremist groups and how they might accomplish something drastic like set off a dirty bomb; his inner turmoil takes a back seat. The movie works just fine as a straightforward thriller, though. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinAug 18, 2016
A chilling, surprisingly effective crime thriller. Read full review
75
The PlaylistGary GarrisonAug 25, 2016
Imperium, at its best, is a film about the ideological crisis of seeing the principles your worldview is built upon repurposed for hate and bigotry. But once it reaches these highs, the third act mostly squanders them. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyDevan CogganAug 24, 2016
Subtlety is not Imperium’s strength. But as a solid thriller, it’s far more successful, and Radcliffe is brilliant as the quick-on-his-feet agent. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerAug 19, 2016
The most interesting character in Imperium is not even Nate. It’s Gerry Conway (Sam Trammell), a seemingly normal family man who reads the great philosophers and loves the music of Brahms and Tchaikovsky, even making an exception for the recordings of Jewish maestro Leonard Bernstein. Terrorists come in all flavors. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubKatie RifeAug 17, 2016
Radcliffe’s performance also ramps up toward the end of the movie, when the pressures of undercover life and his struggle to empathize with these people — his main asset as an undercover agent — really begin to weigh on him. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineOleg IvanovAug 15, 2016
It demonstrates both the fatal proximity and deceptive distance that can exist between the words and deeds of extremists. Read full review
70
TheWrapRuss FischerAug 19, 2016
The star’s transformation from nebbishy office kid to a frankly imposing skinhead street soldier is unsettling and impressive. Read full review
70
VarietyAndrew BarkerAug 15, 2016
Imperium’s depiction of the white-nationalist underground is ultimately background for a straightforward potboiler, and the film is at its best when it stays in that arena. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckAug 15, 2016
Imperium traffics in familiar undercover cop thriller conventions while gaining resonance from its disturbing, timely milieu. Read full review
67
ConsequenceClint WorthingtonAug 25, 2016
If you want to see a nuts-and-bolts look into the banality of evil, with a curiously strong Daniel Radcliffe performance at the center, Imperium fits the bill. Read full review
67
IndieWireDavid EhrlichAug 15, 2016
Radcliffe’s performance ensures that the movie is engaging from start to finish — like Letts, the lynchpin of his portrayal is in the confidence of his voice — but Ragussis is afraid to follow his lead actor down the rabbit hole. Read full review
60
Time Out LondonCath ClarkeSep 19, 2016
It is solid and watchable, and Radcliffe is genuinely ace, giving a smart, understated and intelligent performance. Read full review
58
The Film StageJared MobarakAug 18, 2016
Just as things get bumpy and tensions rise, a bow-tied resolution commences, devoid of stakes yet overflowing with heavy-handed message. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Kate TaylorSep 29, 2016
In short, his film asks that an audience listen to a fair amount of ugly racism without offering much enlightenment or even entertainment in exchange. Words may build bridges but people have to cross them: Imperium remains safely outside the unexplored region. Read full review
50
RogerEbert.comPeter SobczynskiAug 19, 2016
Imperium proves to be a depressingly familiar (when it isn’t just depressing) thriller and the casting of Radcliffe only contributes further to its failings. Read full review
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