Four Lions 2010

Tom Long, Detroit News: The first feature, written and directed by satirist Chris Morris, may seem profane to some, but if you're doomed by watching it, at least you'll go down laughing. Read more

A.O. Scott, New York Times: You laugh until the laughter turns to ashes in your mouth. And then you laugh some more. Read more

Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: Morris and his writers-four of them in this film as well -- like to torture logic with absurdist dialogue, and some of their gang's escapades are amusing rather than laughable. Yet "Four Lions" lacks a moral base. Read more

John Hartl, Seattle Times: An ambitious, uneven new farce that dares to mock the motives and personalities of four suicide bombers who plan to attack the London Marathon. Read more

Nathan Rabin, AV Club: There's something strangely humanizing and even faintly humanistic about the film's depiction of would-be holy warriors who wrestle with the same anxieties, fears, and hopes as the rest of us. Read more

Richard Nilsen, Arizona Republic: Really, these guys are just knuckleheads. And the movie is full of outrageous laughs. Read more

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: A brazenly comic, fatally inconsistent romp that tries to destroy radical fundamentalism with ridicule. Read more

J. R. Jones, Chicago Reader: The comedy divides cleanly into dark, violent slapstick (much of it hilarious) and more routine gags highlighting the fanatical characters' foolishness and incompetence. Read more

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: I think it's appalling in all the right ways. While its lingering aftertaste of ashes in the mouth is unmistakable, I'd argue that the subject warrants it. Read more

Lisa Kennedy, Denver Post: Four Lions is more interesting than riotous. Consider it an example - a well-paced, clever and understated compassionate example - of a filmmaker wrestling with fear. Read more

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: These guys are not charming; they're horrifying in their ignorance, and they cause real damage. But there's a weird relief to be found in the opportunity to laugh ourselves sick at their expense, if only for an instant. Read more

Eric D. Snider, Film.com: I admire anyone for having the nerve to try something like this, and I especially admire Morris for pulling it off in such a breathtakingly funny way. Read more

Michael Ordona, Los Angeles Times: It's not your usual comedic fodder, but the director and co-writer's extensive research and profound intellect elevate the film above mere farce. Read more

David Germain, Associated Press: One of the funniest movies of the year. Read more

Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: The film wisely doesn't try to explore the roots of religious fanaticism and how it can manifest as murder: Instead, it simply accepts the world as it is and focuses on the ridiculous. Read more

Anthony Lane, New Yorker: Might this not have worked better, and conjured more startled outrage, as a mock documentary on TV? Read more

V.A. Musetto, New York Post: The director, Chris Morris, has been successfully making TV and radio comedies for 20 years. But he falters in this, his first feature. He's taken what might make a funny sketch and forced it to run more than an hour and a half. Read more

Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: When it works -- and it doesn't half the time -- it's as if Monty Python were back, putting its merrily imbecilic stamp on the dark world of terrorism. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: It's an exceedingly dark comedy, a wicked satire, a thriller where the thrills center on the incompetence of the villains. It's fueled by both merriment and anger. Read more

Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com: Gradually, the madcap farcical tone of "Four Lions" gives way to something darker, as it becomes clear that Morris intends to follow his characters' pathological aims and motivations right to the end of the road. Read more

David Lewis, San Francisco Chronicle: "Four Lions" is a daring, brilliantly conceptualized film, but like the bumbling bombers of the title, the execution tends to be hit-and-miss. Read more

Dana Stevens, Slate: The very existence of Four Lions is an act of audacity; the fact that it's also smart, humane, and frequently hilarious is nothing short of a miracle. Read more

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune: A dark farce sitting somewhere between "Dr. Strangelove" and "Duck Soup." It will blow you away. Read more

Stephen Cole, Globe and Mail: [Morris's] new comedy has a provocative, ticklish premise -- five North England Muslims become suicide bombers, but can't decide who or what to take with them. Read more

Peter Howell, Toronto Star: It's difficult to imagine a movie this boldly provocative about the underworld of violent jihad, much less one that actually inspires laughter. Read more

Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine: Brilliantly incendiary. Read more

Dave Calhoun, Time Out: Some scenes are hilarious; some are too loopy or uncomfortable to provoke laughs; all strive to achieve something genuinely unusual and essentially true. Read more

Justin Chang, Variety: An audacious premise gets dangerously unstable execution in Four Lions. Read more

Dan Kois, Village Voice: Though Chris Morris's very funny movie revolves around a cell of hapless would-be terrorists, its chief concerns, and strengths, have little to do with ideology-and everything to do with comedy. Read more

Stephanie Merry, Washington Post: The movie falters with an inconsistent tone. Read more