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With Burn After Reading, the Coen Brothers have crafted another clever comedy/thriller with an outlandish plot and memorable characters.
All Critics (238) | Top Critics (54) | Fresh (185) | Rotten (53) | DVD (11)
These are functioning morons, they walk and work among us. And they are brilliant and funny and in spite of the screwball-comedy nature of the story, they are completely believable. Nov 7, 2008
These are functioning morons, they walk and work among us. And they are brilliant and funny and in spite of the screwball-comedy nature of the story, they are completely believable.
Ben Mankiewicz
, Frances McDormand might get nominated for an Academy Award in a supporting role. She was great. Nov 7, 2008 | Full Review…
, Frances McDormand might get nominated for an Academy Award in a supporting role. She was great.
Ben Lyons
The Coens are loopy stylists, and it's often amusing to watch this comedy of errors unfold. But after a masterpiece like No Country for Old Men, Burn After Reading is classified as disposable. Oct 18, 2008 | Rating: 2.5/4
The Coens are loopy stylists, and it's often amusing to watch this comedy of errors unfold. But after a masterpiece like No Country for Old Men, Burn After Reading is classified as disposable.
Joe Williams
Halfway between a good Coen brothers movie and a terrible Coen brothers movie. Oct 17, 2008 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…
Halfway between a good Coen brothers movie and a terrible Coen brothers movie.
Matthew De Abaitua
Indeed, the spies and thrills don't add up at all. The plot is a total mistake. The characters are madly absurd. The film shouldn't work, but it does. Oct 17, 2008 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review…
Indeed, the spies and thrills don't add up at all. The plot is a total mistake. The characters are madly absurd. The film shouldn't work, but it does.
James Christopher
Burn After Reading is the Coens' most mediocre film in a long time: a desperately strained black comic farce. Oct 17, 2008 | Rating: 2/5 | Full Review…
Burn After Reading is the Coens' most mediocre film in a long time: a desperately strained black comic farce.
Peter Bradshaw
The Coens are having none of it. The dopes we encounter every day are the real dopes, the creeps are the real creeps, the people in and around power who seem so stupid and venal really are stupid and venal... Oct 30, 2018 | Full Review…
The Coens are having none of it. The dopes we encounter every day are the real dopes, the creeps are the real creeps, the people in and around power who seem so stupid and venal really are stupid and venal...
Eileen Jones
A statement on imperial power and its sledgehammer approach to human life? Sure, why not. By the end, audiences will be as indifferent as the filmmakers. Oct 18, 2018 | Full Review…
A statement on imperial power and its sledgehammer approach to human life? Sure, why not. By the end, audiences will be as indifferent as the filmmakers.
Stephen Garrett
Quite a downer concept for a comedy, however black. Which is probably why it isn't very funny. Oct 10, 2018 | Full Review…
Quite a downer concept for a comedy, however black. Which is probably why it isn't very funny.
Megan Basham
Although there are a couple of vaguely amusing moments, it fails as a comedy because it just isn't funny, and it fails as a thriller because it just isn't suspenseful and it fails as entertainment of any kind because it is all so ludicrously improbable. Aug 23, 2018 | Full Review…
Although there are a couple of vaguely amusing moments, it fails as a comedy because it just isn't funny, and it fails as a thriller because it just isn't suspenseful and it fails as entertainment of any kind because it is all so ludicrously improbable.
Deborah Ross
It's not for everyone, or funny all the time, but it's worth it for the performances, the cast, the cinematography and of course the complicated and even absurd plot. [Full review in Spanish] Mar 16, 2018 | Rating: 3/5 | Full Review…
It's not for everyone, or funny all the time, but it's worth it for the performances, the cast, the cinematography and of course the complicated and even absurd plot. [Full review in Spanish]
Laura Hiros
Snark maybe is as snark does, but aren't there cases where snark is justified? Nov 17, 2017 | Full Review…
Snark maybe is as snark does, but aren't there cases where snark is justified?
Daniel Kasman
This film is just fun and funny. A Coen Bros classic that can't be missed. The characters are expertly drawn and the alluring, winding plot is enjoyable. Great performances from the entire cast. Possibly the least dark Coens' movie.
Super Reviewer
Another fantastic outing for the Coen Brothers whose quirks and kookiness add charm and additional laughs with repeat viewings. Featuring outstanding work from an all-star cast, the Coen Brothers craft memorable characters and situations that will stick with me forever. I haven't laughed as hard as I do at any other movie in recent memory. The plot is ludicrous and hysterical in equal measure and has the right amount of stupid and smart to work. It won't be everyone's cup of tea, but I consider Burn After Reading a dark comedy masterpiece.
An insanely hilarious melange of comedy and thriller as one would imagine from the Coen Brothers, with a bizarre story full of characters who are stupid beyond comprehension and great performances by its whole cast, especially Brad Pitt stealing the scene.
When it comes to Burn After Reading, it seems the Coens are just pulling things out of thin air. Guess what? It works just fine. Reading the plot-line is one thing, but watching 90 minutes of a lost disk is something else. There is so much intertwining going on, it is surprising how this film never gets as confusing as it sounds. Head-scratching perhaps, but not confusing. The banter from the characters is highly entertaining. In fact, this is one of the areas where this picture excels. The constant barrage of the F word is worth the price of admission. There are a number of noticeable faces. John Malkovich and Brad Pitt get a lot of points for their characters. J.K. Simmons makes the most of his minutes as well. Burn After Reading is an example of a recommendable comedic drama. "Report back to me when it makes sense."
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