The Interview

Name: The Interview
Genre: Action, Comedy
Released: December 25, 2014
Duration: 112 min
Rating: 52
Cast: Diana Bang, James Franco, Lizzy Caplan, Randall Park, Seth Rogen

2014

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 33 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 677 Ratings

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6.1	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 677 Ratings

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The Interview

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Movie Details & Credits

Columbia Pictures | Release Date: December 25, 2014 | R

Starring: Diana Bang, James Franco, Lizzy Caplan, Randall Park, Seth Rogen

Summary: Dave Skylark (James Franco) and his producer Aaron Rapoport (Seth Rogen) run the popular celebrity tabloid TV show Skylark Tonight. When they discover that North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un is a fan of the show, they land an interview with him in an attempt to legitimize themselves as journalists. As Dave and Aaron prepare to travel toDave Skylark (James Franco) and his producer Aaron Rapoport (Seth Rogen) run the popular celebrity tabloid TV show Skylark Tonight. When they discover that North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un is a fan of the show, they land an interview with him in an attempt to legitimize themselves as journalists. As Dave and Aaron prepare to travel to Pyongyang, their plans change when the CIA recruits them, perhaps the two least-qualified men imaginable, to assassinate Kim Jong-un.… Expand

Director: Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen

Genre(s): Action, Comedy

Rating: R

Runtime: 112 min

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Critic Reviews

The Playlist Tess Hofmann

Dec 12, 2014

Comedy is most effective when it’s taking a risk. Here, the directors took a big risk, and managed to finesse something shocking and novel out of the familiar Franco-Rogen dynamic without overplaying their hand. Read full review

G. Allen Johnson

Dec 23, 2014

No matter what you think of dumb comedies, The Interview, thanks allegedly to Kim, has gone from disposable to indispensible cinema. It’s a must-see movie in the context of what has happened, and will spark a discussion of, in comedy, how far is too far? Read full review

Tirdad Derakhshani

Dec 27, 2014

Crazy funny. Read full review

Todd McCarthy

Dec 12, 2014

An intensely sophomoric and rampantly uneven comic takedown of an easy but worrisomely unpredictable target. Read full review

RogerEbert.com Steven Boone

Dec 27, 2014

I didn’t laugh once, but there were several lines that, in context, got a wide fool-grin out of me. Read full review

Stephanie Zacharek

Dec 18, 2014

The more desperately a comedy tries to be outrageous, the less likely it is to be outrageous -- or even just funny. And that's the fate that befalls The Interview, which offers a few moments of casual brilliance... but otherwise trips itself up in the threads of its contrived absurdity. Read full review

Joe Morgenstern

Dec 18, 2014

In the real world, a debate has been raging over what does and doesn’t constitute torture. In the movie world, there’s no debate; watching The Interview is torture from almost start to finish. Read full review

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User Reviews

SudoNoob

Dec 25, 2014

Best movie I've ever seen in my entire life! I laughed through out the movie. James Franko and Seth Rogan are such a great team, especially when it comes to this movie.

26 of 93 users found this helpful2667

MelonsAndPizza

Jan 11, 2015

You need to go into this movie with an immature attitude. If you do that, then I promise you then you will enjoy this movie. It has funny references to other movies, James Franco and Seth Rogen are both fantastic in the film and I absolutely adored the "Firework" song in the movie.
However,You need to go into this movie with an immature attitude. If you do that, then I promise you then you will enjoy this movie. It has funny references to other movies, James Franco and Seth Rogen are both fantastic in the film and I absolutely adored the "Firework" song in the movie.
However, if you like sophisticated comedy then you most certainly will hate it. That's why a lot of people don't like it, But if you just embrace the craziness, then you'll be peeing yourself laughing.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

AGarcia732

Dec 27, 2014

Many of the jokes in "The Interview" and much of the comedy itself is pretty "juvenile": poop/ass jokes, contrived LOTR & Miley Cyrus references, random dick & drug-related comedy, childish thrills/over-the-top acting, somewhat unnecessary gore, etc. 75% of the jokes are unnecessary, andMany of the jokes in "The Interview" and much of the comedy itself is pretty "juvenile": poop/ass jokes, contrived LOTR & Miley Cyrus references, random dick & drug-related comedy, childish thrills/over-the-top acting, somewhat unnecessary gore, etc. 75% of the jokes are unnecessary, and admittedly only 25% of the jokes are truly NOT "lazy", "cheap", or crude. Yet this film is an OK, decent and funny comedy, around as good (a little better or worse than) other comedies. Then why is it getting mixed reception, you might ask? Well, think of it this way: all movies have certain target audiences the movie is meant for. Silent films, chick flicks, B-movies, biopic dramas, erotic XXX films, etc. These films aren't exactly meant to be enjoyed by the majority of the general public; they're most likely going to be enjoyed by a certain demographic. Likewise, "The Interview" is meant for a late teen/early adult public that likes R Rated comedies and satirical entertainment filled with pop-culture references (such as Family Guy or South Park). However, due to all the controversy and publicity this movie is getting (over NK's condemnation of the film and the hacks Sony has suffered from), a lot more people are seeing it than anyone could've once thought . People are seeing it to support free speech and as a sense of patriotic duty, to see WTF everyone is talking about, and to just be a part of the national buzz on the film. Now, is this a good thing for NK's current SUPREME LEADER? No. (He's kind of a mockery now--"that fat little NK dumpling is an international joke" according to one Metacritic user.) For freedom of speech? Debatable. For Sony? To be honest, I can't see Sony making much of a profit from online downloads and VOD purchases/rentals. But I could be wrong. Will The Interview change the way we watch movies? Maybe. Will it be the "firework" needed to cause a coup d'etat/revolution in NK? Who knows?

But, was it good for this movie to be seen by so many people? Well, only certain kinds of people will enjoy it. Many will disregard The Interview as immature, stupid, childish, offensive and obscene. And to be honest, The Interview is a little bit of each of those things. (Rape and racist jokes; also the entire premise of the film will offend some!) But, if you're part of that SPECIAL little demographic audience "The Interview" was marketed/made for, then you will be able to look past its faults and have an enjoyable/fun experience. Is it the best comedy made by/featuring Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, and James Franco? Probably not; it's not the BEST comedy ever. But it's entertaining, and that's all that really matters. It's liberating in its LMAO, FTW attitude. If you hate dumb popcorn movies, most of today's "crass" and "dumbed-down" comedies, etc., then DON'T WATCH THIS MOVIE. Even if you really want to know what everyone (classmates, co-workers, those Botox-loving news anchors) is talking about, I suggest you avoid getting swept away in the the hype-wave. DON'T get your expectations TOO high for this film.

The Interview was meant to lampoon (parody) North Korea. Unfortunately, we don't get to see much of the "Hermit Kingdom". We should've seen more of NK's beautiful scenery (sarcasm, as it probably isn't that pretty--with the death camps, widespread poverty and whatnot). The Interview isn't a complete travesty of NK, though it probably could've been more...accurate? Some scholars are claiming it isn't very grounded."The North Korean side left much to be desired. There were quite a few cheap gag moments and 'bro humour' but I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy the hell out of them." "I think if they made more witty jokes instead of ass jokes, then it could have been way better. It was just silly and trivial. I mean, if Kim Jong-Un is smart enough, he should feel like an imbecile getting so worked up about it after seeing it. Still though, it did make me laugh." "Though it's unlikely to stand out as one of the shrewdest political satires of its time, it is a clever, unrestrained and—most importantly—sidesplitting parody that pokes fun at both a vapid media and one of the world's most dangerous dictators".

James Franco is very burlesque and caricatural as host of tabloid "fluff news" talk show Skylark Tonight. His Dave Skylark is a very cartoonish character, with a personality with exaggerated character traits. Franco probably should've toned his performance a bit. Nevertheless, despite this, I believe he is still a funny character, though a bit of a poorly executed one at that. Seth Rogen helps keep things a bit more realistic between the pair. Randall Park, Lizzy Caplan, and Diana Bang also do even better performances. "The Interview is primarily at its best when presenting an unabashedly silly parody of North Korea, its dictator and the two" worst people possible to send in on a spy mission ever."

I have reviewed Exodus Gods and Kings, THG Mockingjay Part 1, Arrow (S3), Gotham, AoS (S1 & 2) and much more… Expand

2 of 6 users found this helpful24

Apemonkey666

Dec 25, 2014

Kim Jong Un probably was responsible for the Sony hack. Maybe he ordered it after he saw the trailer. Then after the accusations of said hack they demanded to co-investigate or else. Things where heating up, North Korea was bringing their army in a state readiness. The keys for the nukesKim Jong Un probably was responsible for the Sony hack. Maybe he ordered it after he saw the trailer. Then after the accusations of said hack they demanded to co-investigate or else. Things where heating up, North Korea was bringing their army in a state readiness. The keys for the nukes where already in the ignition and all battle-stations manned. WWIII was looming over Western Civilization. The end of mankind was nigh. All this probably happened while Kim was waiting for his copy of the film to arrive (on a Harddisk with a truck coz their internet was down thx to the Yankees). When he did finally see it he came to realize: this is just another stupid Seth Rogen comedy full of fart and f*ck jokes. I'm not wasting my Nukes over this! Soon after they released their statement that they didn't approve of the film's release (or any other future Seth Rogen comedies for that matter) but wouldn't retaliate. The world was safe again.
Seriously, if they would have started WWIII over this, I would kill Seth Rogen myself if he somehow would have survived. Look, this 9,9/10 score on imdb is not a score for the movie itself. It's a reaction to Kim Jong Un's hack and his threats. So let me give this movie a realistic score: 6/10. It's actually not too bad as far as Seth Rogen comedies go, sometimes it was actually funny. Franco plays a retarded news presenter, Rogen plays the straight guy (cfr Pineapple Express). There is some criticism on the American media and it's obsession with fame as well as on suppressing regimes in general. But let's face it: this movie is just entertainment meant to entertain you for 107 mins and it does that fairly well. 'The Interview' wont change your life or the world. It's not a work a cinematic art to be remembered and cherished for years to come. Sony must be thinking they got the best free advertisement for the movie they could have ever dreamed. Now people will want to see it just to know what the fuss was all about.
I do agree that people should be able to make any movie they want but in the end even Kim Jong-un must have cursed himself for making such a fuss about it. If he just kept quit it would have been a moderate success, after a few months it would have gone to DVD/BD and after a couple of years few people would have remembered it. Kim, you're advisers should have told you to keep your big mouth shut :)… Expand

6 of 10 users found this helpful64

MikefromAngus

Dec 25, 2014

The movie was better then what I expected it to be. had some funny parts in it. for a movie that was close to two hours. it didn't drag on, a soild 5 out of 10 stars!

10 of 13 users found this helpful103

duncan1964

Feb 16, 2015

The film that almost caused the collapse of a film studio and nearly led to WWIII should really be a lot better. A TV chat show host is going to North Korea to interview Kim Jong-Un when the CIA get involved and tell him he must assassinate the leader while he is there. There are laughs toThe film that almost caused the collapse of a film studio and nearly led to WWIII should really be a lot better. A TV chat show host is going to North Korea to interview Kim Jong-Un when the CIA get involved and tell him he must assassinate the leader while he is there. There are laughs to be had here but they are few and far between. As with all comedies from the Seth Rogan camp, scenes are allowed to go on way past their natural end point and it would seem most actors are told to go as BIG as possible. Worst offender here is James Franco, whose performance is nails-on-a-blackboard annoying!! In the end this is a inconsequential film that doesn't deserve the publicity that North Korea has given it, and in a years time we will all be struggling to remember what all the fuss was about… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

agir002

Feb 22, 2015

Worst movie I have ever seen. Stupid plot, bad acting and lame jokes. It was my fault for not watching the trailer or reading the reviews as I assumed that because it was about North Korea it was going to be an intelligent piece of work/documentary. My ignorance led to me sitting throughWorst movie I have ever seen. Stupid plot, bad acting and lame jokes. It was my fault for not watching the trailer or reading the reviews as I assumed that because it was about North Korea it was going to be an intelligent piece of work/documentary. My ignorance led to me sitting through excruciating torture in the cinema. Thankfully I fell asleep half way through!… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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