In The Loop

For many years now Armando Iannucci has been one of the finest minds in comedy. Just look at the list of shows he has worked on either as writer, performer or producer (The Day Today, Alan Partridge, Time Trumpet) and talent he has nurtured as a result (Chris Morris, Lee And Herring, Steve Coogan) if you need proof. And yet his finest work may also be his most low key, both in style and the fact that it went out on BBC 4, The Thick Of It. Using a documentary style the viewer is granted access to the inner sanctum of New Labour, and later the identical Conservative camp, and in particular the spin machine designed to make it more important how an act is perceived than what the actual act actually is. Here we are introduced to Chief Spin Doctor Malcolm Tucker (Peter Capaldi), an expletive spewing monster and one of the finest creations ever to appear on telly. Only he's not really a creation as he is, supposedly very accurately, based on New Labour's real Spin Doctor Alistair Campbell. Basically every week a bumbling minister, and there are (too) many of those in British politics, would say or do something that reflects badly on the party and and Tucker would be left to sort it out. Things are no different here.

In The Loop sees Tucker shifted from London to Washington after cabinet minister Simon Foster (Tom Hollander) makes not one but two balls ups whilst discussing a potential war in the Middle East that sees him being courted by both the Hawks and the Peaceniks in the American regime. The first time we hear him speak he is talking about diarrhoea, quite appropriate for that to be coming out of his mouth really. This is a man who when attending an important meeting has to be reminded by note not to act like a tit. He's another in Iannucci's line of bumbling, mumbling public school educated fools who happen to be in charge of our country. Listening to him you can't help but picture Jack Straw, or any number of his grey, New Labour clones.

In this respect he is the perfect foil for Capaldi's Tucker, a man of absolute conviction in his own brilliance which allows him to rise above all those around him. You suspect Tucker's really in charge of the country and funnily enough as terrifying as that prospect is looking at the alternatives leaves you confused as to whether it really would be worse. Capaldi's performance is nothing short of brilliant. He absolutely becomes the hateful, cynical, conniving bastard and is clearly having the time of his life playing him in the improvisational environment Iannucci provides for his performers. Tucker is clearly the role of a lifetime for the actor and the relish he employs to every insult, every tirade and every "fuck" is just a joy to watch.

That said Paul Higgins as Jamie The Press Secretary almost upstages him. In the Night Of The Living Dead Rifftrax it is noted with tongue wedged in cheek that it's an interesting acting choice taken by Karl Hardman as Harry Cooper to start incredibly angry and escalate from there. Well that's exactly what Higgins does and this time it is a perfect choice. Jamie makes Tucker look nice. Whereas Malcolm may threaten people with violence it's very clear Jamie will happily follow through. He's only in a couple of scenes but almost steals the entire movie with his rant about why you never see a superhero builder before letting loose on some unfortunate office equipment while screaming about how angry he is at it.

Other memorable moments include Karen Clarke (Mimi Kennedy) having some dental problems during an important war related meeting, Lt. Gen. George Miller (James Gandolfini) attempting to calculate how many troops the U.S. has spare on a kid's Speak and Spell type toy, and Steve Coogan's slightly demented turn as a disgruntled constituent of Foster's who is having trouble with a wall. But most of all it's the dialogue that makes In The Loop great. To put it simply it's a joy just to revel in it. But it's not just there for show as the plot is almost entirely driven by it. It's a brave move, and one that should be applauded as Iannucci threats his audience with a respect most filmmakers would never afford them. It's brilliant just to watch a film that works on the assumption that the viewers are intelligent enough to follow what's going on without having to be shown.

In The Loop is an intelligent, brave and hilarious little character piece. It's also the best film of the year so far and one that suggests that after having ruled in the realm of television comedy for so long that he is now ready to do the same in the film world. Alan Partridge: The Movie anyone?