'The Critic' Review
“The Critic” is a classic case of a fantastic performance and lead character in a movie that doesn’t rise to the same level of impact. This is an enjoyable dramatic thriller, and I don’t completely hate the directions it goes in. But when director Anand Tucker and writer Patrick Marber’s adaptation of Anthony Quinn’s 2015 novel Curtain Call abruptly transitions from a unique and biting first half to a messy and generic second half, the experience decreases and the film can’t completely recover.
Let’s start with the positives: Ian McKellen is excellent as longtime dramatic theatre critic Jimmy Erskine. He’s been at The Daily Chronicle for 40 years. He believes in standards, freedom of thought, opinion and expression, and considers himself part of ‘The Old Guard’. He thinks critics have incredible influence on readers, to the height of ‘immortality’, and feels threatened with this is challenged. Jimmy’s vicious in his writing, and in what he says to friends, colleagues and complete strangers. There’s some great dialogue and commentary that makes “The Critic” have a substantial amount of relevance 90 years after its 1934 setting.
But when the new head of the paper (Mark Strong) tells Jimmy to tone it down (“More Beauty, Less Beast”), this sets him off and his job is quickly threatened. Jimmy’s interactions with an actress he’s destroyed in reviews for years (played by Gemma Arterton) allow the wheels to turn in his head, coming-up with a scheme that could save his position at the paper but destroy the lives of others in the process. Does he have the heart to care? And what other secrets is he hiding?
“The Critic” didn’t need to go down nearly as much of a mystery / soap opera-esque road as it does. It becomes increasingly difficult to believe what’s happening. Through it all (though he’s not in the second half quite as much) is McKellen, whose work is right up there with playing detective “Mr. Holmes” as some of the best of his career.
“The Critic” is a must-see for critics and writers enamored with the art of criticism, but I unfortunately can’t give it four stars.
