The Critic

2024 101 min ★ 5.8 Thriller, Crime, Drama, Mystery

Jimmy Erskine is the most feared theatre critic of the age. He lives as flamboyantly as he writes and takes pleasure in savagely taking down any actor who fails to meet his standards. When the owner of the Daily Chronicle dies, and his son takes over, Jimmy quickly finds himself at odds with his new boss and his position under threat. In an attempt to preserve the power and influence he holds so sacred, Jimmy strikes a Faustian pact with a struggling actress, entangling them and the boss in a thrilling but deadly web of desire, blackmail, and betrayal.

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Cast

Ian McKellen

Jimmy Erskine

Gemma Arterton

Nina Land

Mark Strong

David Brooke

Lesley Manville

Annabel Land

Ben Barnes

Stephen Wyley

Romola Garai

Cora Wyley

Alfred Enoch

Tom Tunner

Ron Cook

Hugh Morris

Claire Skinner

Mary Brooke

Matthew Cottle

Graham Meadows

Details

Director

Anand Tucker

Tagline

"Ambition seduces. Power corrupts."

Status

Released

Original Language

EN

Revenue

$824,517

Production

BK Studios, Seven Stories, Greenwich Entertainment

Reviews

C

CinemaSerf

September 22, 2024

★ 6/10

If you saw Sir Ian McKellen with fellow thesp Sir Derek Jacobi in the television sitcom "Vicious" from around ten years ago, you'll be able to anticipate the gist of his characterisation of the acerbic theatre critic "Erskine" who is way more famed for distributing bile rather than bouquets. His new boss (Mark Strong) wants the newspaper to appeal to an altogether more wholesome family audience an...