The Critic

Ah, a movie about a theater critic from film producers, not hard to guess where that will lead us. The script for the most part is well conceived and it will hold your attention throughout. Sadly some of the plot devices are 1.) unnecessary and 2.) just plain old cheesy. And that is most unfortunate. The main character is venal, craven, self interested and most certainly immoral (and I am not referring to any sexual orientation) which would easily describe one half of the people in the entertainment business. Ian McKellen was just devastating in his 'deliverance' of the role of the critic and the supporting cast did him justice . My criticism is the unnecessary elements in the plot and how they don't really fit , IE you could have just as easily told the story without them. I recommend the movie without reservation ,(it isn't action or fantasy) McKellen's performance alone along with the witty dialogue from his character make the movie highly entertaining and I promise you will not be bored or impatient watching this movie.

Unlikely the movie's titular character, Jimmy Erskine, played deliciously by Ian McKellen, I am not a professional critic/judge/reviewer.

I am, however, someone who enjoys a good story. Alas, "The Critic" baffles me. On the one hand, it had the potential of good mystery, but it didn't choose to go that way. It also had the potential to be a good revenge caper. Sadly, it also didn't go that way.

Instead, we get in a quick run-time of 1 hour 40 minutes in which we don't really get good characterization, a good plot, or even a good crime story. Instead, we get a hurried and inadequate portrayal of a desperate man.

And why is he desperate? That's not really the right question. If you do decide to watch this movie, you'll know what I mean.

Anyone who thinks this tale exaggerated was not alive when critics for the papers really did have this much power, which survived into the 1970s to some degree. Ian McKellen delivers a powerful portrayal of an aged, egotistical, and vain theatre critic of the 1930s.

Walter Kerr in New York in the 1950s and 1960s had such power but was, I am pleased to say, not anything like the corrupt McKellen character. The story is based upon the novel CURTAIN CALL by the interesting novelist Anthony Quinn (no relation to the actor of that name), who enjoys writing stories set in the early to mid-twentieth century in England. I have read a couple and have more sitting around waiting for my attention. McKellen's character is gay, a condition not unknown to McKellen himself I believe. An adoring younger man lives with him and looks after him, played with quiet devotion by an excellent young actor named Alfred Enoch who underplays the role so well that it makes the entire story more plausible. McKellen's character walks a dangerous tightrope in numerous ways and seems perversely to enjoy the thrill of taking such risks. And he progressively pushes out the boundaries of his audacity and pomposity to see just how far he can go, which is pretty far. But then the actress Nina Land come into the story, played by Gemma Arterton. With breath-taking audacity, McKellen believes he can make use of her in a complex blackmail plot to regain his position as critic, having just been fired for being caught with his trousers down with a chap, if you see what I mean. Remember this was all illegal then. He engages in this plot because his boss, the titled owner of a major newspaper, is romantically obsessed with the girl, despite being married to Romola Garai. (I didn't say anything!) The gloomy and obsessed owner of the paper is magnificently played by Mark Strong. Indeed, all the acting in this film is finely attuned to some invisible tuning-fork to get just the right pitch. I guess we can congratulate the director, Anand Tucker, for making all that happen, and delivering to us such a moody and atmospheric study of moral corruption in London's theatreland.

It's 1934, you're in London. You go see a play in a theatre. You see an old man writing vigorously in a notebook. This man is a critic, somebody with the power to raise an actress's career to stardom or send it crashing down around them. This is the premise of the newly released British period drama called THE CRITIC. Jimmy Erskine (Ian McKellan) is a gay theatre critic for the Daily Chronicle, which is undergoing drastic changes since its leader passed away, giving the reigns to the son, David Brooke (Mark Strong). Worried about the old guard being fired, Jimmy does everything he can to keep his job. Actress Nina Land (Gemma Arterton) gets caught up in his schemes, forming a strange relationship. Escalation ensues! In an interview, McKellan has described his character perfectly using only one word, curdled. Jimmy has become rotten to the core, brutally mean in his critiques, manipulative and selfish to the people around him. McKellan does such a great job in the role he made me hate Ian! This movie has some pacing issues for me. It's a very slow burn, and then it rushes too fast near the end. They also don't do a good enough job in establishing the relationships between certain characters. Sometimes I didn't know who was who to who. I heard from somewhere that they had done some rewrites and reshoots, which might explain some things, I just didn't get enough payoff from the slow burn. I still highly recommend this movie simply for seeing Ian McKellan in a very interesting role and having a very fun time doing it.

I had hoped for so much more from The Critic due to its premise, title and cast. I was bitterly disappointed. The pointless and fruitless direction of this film is frustrating. We see a random array of events that add little to no value. It seems like we are watching a bunch of uneventful situations playout, I found myself asking so what? Humanity is not great at times but why did we need to see a film about this and how on earth did this get the green light? Where was the payoff or purpose? Veteran actor, Ian Mckellen, gives a solid performance but it is not enough to save this pitiful excuse of a film.