In the Loop

Is it a work of fictional farce or an insightful view of the members of the governmental bureaucracy? Probably in truth, In The Loop is a little bit of both, but more so its a whole lot of fun at the governments expense. There have been numerous films over the years giving us insight into how our government works, at times it sure looks bleak and unjust, but we sure haven't seen it in such a ridiculous view. In The Loop aims at making sure they scrutinize the bureaucratic desk jocks for all their worth. The film follows the Minister of International Development (Tom Hollander) after he has put his foot in his mouth, unintentionally announcing that war is unforeseeable. Back tracking and word-smith manipulations prove mute, fortunately for the Minister he's got big fans in the US who would like nothing more then to use the naive Brit in their political posturing. The hawks begin circling and before the Minister knows what game he's playing he's into deep and merely a puppet in the political theater.

There is a hint of a serious political thriller in the plot here, but In The Loop knows we've seen all that before so why not have a little fun, actually why not have a whole lot of fun and throw in lots of scalding four letter words and absolute British wit. Tom Hollander as the Minister of I.D. is dumb-foundingly perfect in his role and is well complemented by his bungling assistant Oliver (played exceptionally by Chris Addison). As the Director of Communications, Peter Capaldi steals the show with his relentlessly scathing superhuman vulgarity ridden wit. Those with a distaste for such colorful language should look elsewhere as their ears will certainly be on fire if they can last through a third of the film. Personally the language was not a problem for me, I appreciate a master of the finer words, and Capaldi has shown himself to deliver his lines with such craftsmanship that sailors around the world will be put to shame.

The Brits are a fantastic mess, but of course what international mess would be complete without the United States Govt.. And so comes the behemoth know as James Gandolifini, the Don Capo hasn't lost any of his on-screen presence. As the ol' war vet Pentagon General, Gandolfini is gruff and verbally abusive in a really mean spirited way, which is glorious. Those with a keen sense of cinema will notice how well the film shifts humor as the Brits come across the pond to the the dry humor of America. Gandolfini makes the most of his screen time, but on the American side the majority of the ridiculousness comes from Mimi Kennedy, as the Assistant Secretary of Diplomacy and her bickering 20 something Capital Hill brown nosing assistants. Director Armando Ianucci's delivers such a cynical sharp witted look at all things politically ridiculous and it works on so many levels. Fans of British humor will love this, its pureness to the form is perfectly meshed into the political platform that moves the comedy along with merely a few small bumps in the road. On the other side of the coin, those who enjoy making fun of those of the diplomatic persuasion will delight in the roasting of our governmental members.

In the Loop is an unusually good and funny film from a usually tepid and rather unfunny genre. After enduring an onslaught of mediocre films centered around the war in Iraq, 2009 seems to have finally brought audiences closer to cinematic resolution: first Kathryn Bigelow's invigorating The Hurt Locker gave us a fresh insight, and now this: a relatively lighter affair, to be sure, but one of such rapid-fire wit that a second viewing is almost required.

In stereotypically British fashion, the humour is dry — you probably won't experience many belly laughs — and yet selling it merely as such seems like something of a disservice to its quality. Best described in one line as a blend of Dr. Strangelove, This Is Spinal Tap and the Ricky Gervais Office series, director Armando Iannucci has parodied the lunacy of political disinformation and thoughtless rhetoric without his film coming across as a laborious broken record or the mouthpiece of an insufferable pacifist. No, you don't have to be a liberal to enjoy this (although I can't necessarily picture Bill O'Reilly endorsing it) — anyone with an appreciation for intelligent comedy, regardless of personal views, should find something to admire here, and it'll be a shame if the picture isn't at least nominated for Best Screenplay by year's end.

The film is a spin-off of Iannucci's UK show The Thick of It, starring a couple of the same characters, and it presumably takes place during the days leading up to the invasion of Iraq (although, to be fair, we're never given the precise name of the country being targeted, nor the date for which these events take place).

The plot moves fast and some of the characters are hard to get a handle on at first, but it goes something like this: Britain's Minister of International Development, Simon Foster (Tom Hollander), has a slip of the tongue while recording a live radio interview, admitting that any instance of war is "unforeseeable" and thereby perhaps even necessary — thus enraging the Prime Minister's Director of Communications, Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi in a scathingly brilliant performance). At the behest of the PM, Tucker has Foster and his new assistant, Toby (Chris Addison), shipped off to Washington, D.C., where they suffer a game of political discourse with a pro-war State Department official (played well by David Rasche). The film also features talented actors in minor roles: James Gandolfini appears in one of the film's most unexpectedly funny scenes, as a four-star general who computes the cost of a hypothetical war using a kids' toy calculator. ("At the end of a war, you need some soldiers left, really, or else it looks like you've lost.") Steve Coogan, whose wonderful Alan Partridge was co-created by Iannucci, pops up in one of the more silly-minded sequences, as a man with a bit of a wall issue.

Though the film has achieved almost unanimous praise amongst critics, there have been some complaints, namely those of the NY Press' Armond White. Usually I don't address the comments of other reviewers, mainly because I typically don't care, but also because everyone is entitled to their own opinion; yet I felt compelled to respond to White's assertion that "Iannucci's sense of place is indistinguishable from The Office or The West Wing." The Office, sure, but The West Wing? Really? Did we watch the same film, Mr. White? That show's relative glamorization of closed door politics could not be at more complete odds with In the Loop, both in style and substance. What's particularly interesting is that UK magazine Time Out did an article on the film last year, and even cited the movie's production design as being the polar opposite of The West Wing's. Journalist Dave Calhoun wrote: "Iannucci tells me that he sees In the Loop as a cousin of The Thick of It. The similarities are everywhere, down to the docu-style, hand-held camera-work evident on the monitors (it's the same director of photography) and the anti-'West Wing' production design that throws all notions of political glamour out the window." I mention this only because it is worth pointing out the movie's heavy cynicism. Screen International's David D'Arcy noted the film's untimely release: "Its exuberant, boundless cynicism will test the demand for political satire in an Obama-infatuated America." I respectfully disagree — audiences have never shown an inclination towards noting their countries' present failures, which would perhaps best explain why almost every single motion picture focused on the Iraq War since 2003 has been a box office flop. Audiences flock to cinemas for escapism — not reminders. If time heals all wounds, then perhaps this is the opportune time to release In the Loop: at a point when we can begin to take a step back and accept the humour.

Regardless: this is a very sharp, decisive comedy, and certainly worth seeking out. The "instant classic" label is vastly overused, but it is perhaps not unforeseeable that this film may one day be for politics what Spinal Tap was for heavy metal.

In other words: an instant classic.

One of the wittiest and most sophisticated movie satires of recent vintage, "In the Loop" provides us with a hilarious behind-the-scenes glimpse into the ugly, messy world of international diplomacy. The mad run-up to the Iraq war serves as the obvious blueprint for the fictional - yet far from make-believe - tale the writers have come up with here. We begin in London where news has just leaked out that the British and Americans are planning a military invasion of an unspecified country in the Middle East. When the bumbling Minister for International Development, Simon Foster, accidentally goes off script by stating in an interview that such a war is "unforeseeable," the Prime Minister's staff goes into immediate damage control mode, hustling Foster off to Washington D.C. to see if they can get him in on the pre-war planning and negotiations. From that point on, Foster becomes a bone-of-contention between the pro-war and anti-war factions battling it out for preeminence.

The source for "In the Loop" is a popular British TV series entitled "The Thick of It," with many of the actors from that program appearing in the movie (though we're told that most of the performers play different roles in the film from the ones they play on the show). As if that weren't confusing enough, the script by Jesse Armstrong, Simon Blackwell, Armando Iannucci and Tony Roche spends virtually no time on introductions or back story of any kind, leaving those of us who are unfamiliar with the context feeling just a wee bit lost and disoriented at the beginning. Indeed, we are plunged so immediately into the swirl of activity surrounding the minister's diplomatic faux pas that we learn early on that we had better start paying some serious attention to what's happening on screen or risk going under in pretty short order. I say this not as a criticism of the writing because, frankly, this is one of the few comic scripts I've come across in quite some time that actually treats its audience like thinking adults, that doesn't find it necessary to talk down to us in order to appeal to the lowest-common-denominator viewer. The one-liners come fast and furious in this film and woe to anyone not willing to make the effort to keep up with them. The good news is that the writing is so sharp and acerbic that we really don't mind putting that extra added effort into our viewing. One simply cannot be a passive onlooker while watching "In the Loop" and still reap the rewards of the experience.

With the kind of understated irony that distinguishes the best of British humor, the densely-plotted, character-rich screenplay aims its comedic sights at all the would-be power players, petty backbiters, toadying assistants, long-suffering aides, incompetent bureaucrats, draconian bosses, mealy-mouthed office-holders and enraged constituents that make up the world of high-level diplomacy and politics. The movie also has some fun with England's perceived role as ugly stepsister (or lapdog, if you prefer) to the bully-boy United States in matters of world affairs.

Director Iannucci gets nothing less than a sterling performance from each and every member of his large and gifted cast, be they American (with James Gandolfini the most recognizable face in that crowd) or British. However, extra special note should be taken of Tom Hollander, Chris Addison, Mimi Kennedy and, above all, Peter Capaldi, who tears up the screen as the deliciously ill-tempered and foul-mouthed enforcer for the British Prime Minister.

The truths this allegorical fable reveals about how easy it is to cherry pick evidence to lead a country into war and how hard it is for individuals of goodwill to stand up for what they know is right are so dead-on in their accuracy and so universal in their scope that they leave the mind reeling from the impact - and the ribcage aching from all the laughter.

There is something about British comedy that resonates with me. I don't know if it is because we in the States experience so little of it, or maybe because Hollywood rapes and pillages the material for their own water-downed versions, but the humor just seems fresh, uncensored, and hilarious. When I first came across the new political black comedy In the Loop, I will admit to being less than interested. The marketing materials were using the whole Obama silkscreen poster look and I really wasn't interested in a movie about how the US and Britain decided to go into the Middle East. But then the buzz started. The realization that the film was shot with a penchant for improv, a desire to entertain rather than teach, and a cast of characters looking as though they are in a Christopher Guest movie, soon turned that preconception around. This is a fantastic film that never lets up on the laughs or one-liners. I just hope people go into it knowing that this isn't how it actually happened … but then who knows? Sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction.

The back and forth dialogue is so quick that I couldn't believe my eyes when I read a quote from the director about it all being about 80-85% scripted. He says that he gave the actors leeway to break course and even do takes without scripts at all, but when culling everything together, most of what stuck actually maintained the verbiage laid out by its five screenwriters. Each of these men, including director Armando Iannucci, has been working with British television and all have collaborated on the show "The Thick of It". I will say now, if I get a chance to check it out, I most certainly will. Political satire is not necessarily my favorite thing in the world—I'll watch the odd "Daily Show" episode—but after viewing this laugh-riot, checking out a spoof on the British political system, of which I know very little, could be a ton of fun. Heck, just the inclusion of Peter Capaldi will get me to stop surfing when I reach the BBC. This guy steals the show without question.

Capaldi plays Malcolm Turner, a Brit on the frontline of politics as an aide to the Prime Minister, spinning everything and anything to save face. With no time to spare on his running across the Atlantic to put out fires wherever his compatriots start them, you will have to forgive his abrasive, sarcastic, and just plain mean demeanor. The idea of war is being bandied about on talk shows, behind closed-door governmental meetings, and all over the media machine, and it is up to him to keep a lid on it by walking the party line, neither stating a fight is inevitable or unforeseeable—two terms that the buffoon who is British Secretary of State for International Development Simon Foster, played beautifully by the ever capable Tom Hollander, loves to utter. Foster just has to open his mouth to cause a stir felt around the world, and each time, of course, Malcolm Turner is there to chastise and humiliate his stupidity.

The film ultimately revolves around the journey Hollander's Foster takes in trying to enhance exposure for himself. Partaking in talk shows or talking out of turn when enlisted to just be "room meat", some of the Americans begin to see him as someone abroad that shares their sentiment that war is a bad idea. While David Rasche's Linton Barwick—a hardcore proponent of battle, even using a live grenade as a paperweight—forms secret committees to discuss strategies for war, Mimi Kennedy's Karen Clarke and James Gandolfini's Lt. General George Miller are looking for ways to get into that meeting and shut it down. As a result, those two dissenters try to get Foster at every event to awkwardly express his stance of war being unforeseeable, hoping to deter any people on the fence that may be in attendance. So, Malcolm must run back and forth through England and DC spinning things his way and lambasting anyone that gets in his line of fire. Either Foster is too oblivious to care about the verbal assaults thrown his way or he just feels he can blame his Director of Communications Judy, who he makes stay at home while he globe-trots with his new young adviser Toby, (Gina McKee and Chris Addison respectively). Toby and Foster are so similar in their awe of America and lack of experience that their adventures make for good cinema, taking camera phone pics out their limo and speaking about getting hookers for the ride.

In the Loop is expertly acted and, for the most part, I have to credit that to the intelligent script being utilized. Whether the actors are improvising or not, the original text they are sticking to or springboarding from needed to be strong. By using all the jokes and imbecilic actions we associate with politicians, the writers have crafted a plausible, if not entirely idiotic, account of the days leading up to our countries' joint invasion. Documents are leaked, words are twisted, and supposed partners are stabbed in the back. But through it all we have Capaldi doing his best to keep Britain's stance as noncommittal as possible. And, truthfully, the way in which he does it makes for what has to be the funniest role of the year. Every word out of his mouth is acerbic and full of double meaning. With the f-word spewing at will and demeaning name-callings going left and right, make sure your head is clear if British speech sometimes troubles you in the comprehension realm. Understanding his words definitely pays off, keeping what would otherwise be a slightly bloated and meandering plot grounded in comedic excellence.

During a fit of collective insanity the British people voted for a charlatan snake-oil salesman to be Prime Minister in 1997 and then re-elected him twice more. This film (together with the TV series from which it is a spin-off) is a record of the disgusting, bullying manner in which Tony Blair's head spin doctor, (actually a man named Alastair Campbell, but here named Malcolm Tucker) ran the government.

It nicely paints a picture of just one of the ineffectual, dim, gaff-prone and incompetent ministers with which Saint Tony surrounded himself. Unfortunately we never get to glimpse the more senior figures of this feckless government, Gordon Brown and the appalling Mr Blair himself.

Quite bravely, the film sets out how the "intelligence" was manipulated by Campbell/Tucker in such a way that it gave credence to the necessity for the Iraq war. With hindsight this is perhaps the most egregious example of outrageous behaviour on his part, but maybe there are other examples still to come out. But it literally beggars belief that an unelected oaf like Campbell/Tucker should have been given the power and authority to act on the Prime Minister's behalf in the way that he did.

It has been pointed out that this film does for contemporary politics what "Yes Minister" did in the 1980s. Very true. Ministers are shown as complete bloody fools being manipulated by the Civil Servants ("Yes Minister") or private office appointees ("In the Loop"). "Yes Minister" was also quite misleadingly described as "Comedy". No, this will not do. Both these pieces are documentary, but funny nevertheless.

You laugh at the time, but if you think about it, you cry. What a state we have come to.