Film: In the Loop
Cast includes: James Gandolfini (The Sopranos), Peter Capaldi (The Thick of It), Tom Hollander (Elizabeth: The Golden Age), Gina McKee (The Forsyte Saga), Mimi Kennedy (Homefront), Chris Addison (The Thick of It)
Genre: Political satire
In brief: “War is unforeseeable.” It was an off-the-cuff comment by British government official, Simon Foster that brought down the wrath of the Prime Minister’s chief enforcer and attack dog, Malcolm Tucker. In trying to dig his way out, Simon is then caught in another off-the-cuff interview talking about “climbing the mountain of conflict.” In the meantime, US government official, Karen Clarke and General George Miller are hoping to short circuit mounting pressure for war on the US side of the pond. Thinking they’ve identified a like-minded Brit, they invite Simon to Washington to attend some conferences. Simon is sick of the know-it-all attitude of long-time staffer, Judy, so he takes the new hire, Toby. When Toby leeks details about the secret war committee meeting to CNN, the whole fiasco becomes a media feeding frenzy. Malcolm is less than pleased. He doesn’t like to “learn anything about a British government official on TV unless they’ve died.” And if words could kill, Simon would die a very brutal death, indeed.
If rough language offends you, do NOT see In the Loop… consider yourself warned! For those who enjoy scathingly funny, take-no-prisoners dialog, In the Loop is high art. While the style of In the Loop is decidedly British, I believe American audiences, for the most part, will get on board with this one. Some of the accents are a bit difficult, but not impossible. It is impossible, however, to catch every line because of the unrelenting, rapid-fire pace of the dialogue. But in the end, you'll catch more than enough to enjoy this film.
As I left the theatre, I overheard several conversations about wanting to stay and watch it again. This is an intensely funny movie… assuming it’s your kind of humor… and you’ll come away wanting to remember some of your favorite lines. But the filmmakers don’t give you enough time to process one laugh line before firing the next one.
4 popped kernels
Popped kernels for the wonderful satire, great script, word crafting, acting and wicked humor.
