Reviews

Ian McKellen and the role of acid-tongued theatre critic are a match made in heaven in this period drama.

In 1930s London, Jimmy Erskine (McKellen) is riding high on his own inflated ego after years of striking fear in the hearts of all actors and theatrical production staff. When his new boss David (Mark Strong) asks him to tone down his savage opinions or risk losing his job at the Daily Chronicle newspaper, Jimmy devises a devious plot with actress Nina Land (Gemma Arterton) to ensure his job security.

Anand Tucker’s film starts off really well as a sharp, amusing comedy that explores the relationship between the critic and the victims of his mean takedowns, particularly bad actress Nina. You can’t help but laugh because Jimmy is an awful and unremorseful person and his insults are shockingly brutal.

But the narrative loses its way when the blackmail plot comes into play. The film becomes much darker and aims to be a thriller of sorts. Unfortunately, the emotional beats don’t work because you are not invested in any of the characters – because they have no depth – and it’s not thrilling because you don’t particularly care what happens to them.

The Critic is an ensemble piece with plenty of familiar faces – like Ben Barnes, Lesley Manville and Alfred Enoch – but it should have been streamlined and focussed purely on Jimmy and his assistant Tom (Enoch), Nina and David. McKellen’s performance is so strong that you miss him when he’s not there – and he has quite a bit of time off-screen thanks to the multitude of subplots.

Tucker should have cut back on the characters because everyone else except the core four are unnecessary and a couple – Romola Garai and Claire Skinner – are woefully underused.

The Critic shows great potential in the first half but becomes less and less interesting as it progresses, which is a shame when McKellen delivers such a deliciously devilish performance.

In cinemas on Friday 13th September.

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