Review – In the Loop

I should have hated this movie. I’m no fan of actor improv, and the British angle usually wouldn’t have helped matters. But this worked for me in a really big way. Peter Capaldi and James Gandolfini are the most recognizable faces in the ensemble cast playing diplomatic factotums to a T. The picture is loosely based on director Armando Iannucci’s TV series “The Thick of It,” though you don’t have to be familiar with the show to get a kick out of the movie (which is a good thing, as the show isn’t currently available on this side of the Atlantic). Overall the movie is as plotless and meandering as anything Altman ever did. But the small details, the funny situations or clever bits of dialogue supply more than enough entertainment to keep things interesting. Buy the disc