In the Loop

Peter Capaldi seems to be in his element as the foul-mouthed political aide "Tucker" in this look at just whether it's the tail that does the political wagging of the dog. He has it in for the British International Development Secretary "Foster" (Tom Hollander) who finds an off the cuff quote during a radio interview plunges him into a debate on both sides of the Atlantic about a potential war scenario. "Tucker" thinks he can just railroad his opinion through by sheer force of nature and excessive Anglo-Saxon peppered invective, but the American side of this are a bit more subtle - and "Gen. Miller" (James Gandolfini) and State Department deputy under secretary for countries beginning with the letter C - "Karen Clark" (Mimi Kennedy) take "Foster" at face value and what follows in now a quickly paced game of manipulation, duplicity and spookily ambitious interns. At times this quite potently mixes the scenarios of a "Yes, Minister" edition with the writing sharpness of the "West Wing" but for the most part I just found it all a bit too repetitious and vulgar. I think "Judy" (Gina McKee) would have been perfectly justified attacking "Tucker" with a rusty stapler and after about fifteen minutes I began to wonder why she didn't. It's his unfettered obnoxiousness that robs the thing of even the faintest sense of realism. The aforementioned television series worked because the roots of their humour were based in something plausible, the humour was a little more sophisticated and the characters not so crass. Hollander does well though, the mouse minister who fills a chair with little ideology one way or the other, as does Chris Addison as the weathervane analyst "Toby" who really has mastered the art of straddling the proverbial fence with aplomb. For me, though, sorry - this lacks any form of class with the quickly paced but far too abrasive and unconvincing a lead character. It was made at a time when the chief of staff role to the British Prime Minister was under a bit of a spotlight, so it's an easy target for Ianucci to throw stones at - I just like my comedy a little more thoughtful and a little less custard pie.