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The Laundromat

2019

Steven Soderbergh

Meryl Streep, Gary Oldman, Antonio Banderas, David Schwimmer ...

5.5

5,149

Mystery. Thriller. Comedy Based on the book by Jake Bernstein titled 'Secrecy World: Inside the Panama Papers Investigation of Illicit Money Networks and the Global Elite'. The Panama Papers were leaked documents in 2017 that showed how Mossack Fonseca, a Panamanian law firm, allowed the wealthy and the connected to funnel money illegally in and around the world.

	Author	Review
United States	Owen Gleiberman Variety	" 'Traffic' lite (...) [It] is Soderbergh at his most playful, and also Soderbergh at his most wonkish"	POS
United States	Todd McCarthy The Hollywood Reporter	"Soderbergh and Burns seemingly wanted to emphasize the sheer outrageousness of the scam and have a little fun with it in the bargain, but their satirical aim ultimately doesn't measure up to the sharpness of their ambitions."	NEU
United States	Stephanie Zacharek Time	"Much of the movie is bitterly funny; some of it just amusingly droll. But the finale, a rallying cry that’s both galvanizing and wistful, is a wrap-up worth waiting for."	POS
United States	Jessica Kiang The Playlist	"[It] is essentially a caper film (...) The tone is lighthearted (...) But the wit and ease are deceptive, concealing almost frighteningly impeccable filmmaking."	POS
United States	Alonso Duralde The Wrap	"There’s no question that more people should be familiar with the Panama Papers (...) but even with its heart in exactly the right place, 'The Laundromat' isn’t going to move that needle."	NEG
United States	Eric Kohn IndieWire	"Soderbergh excels at exploring the complex systems governing modern society with a delicious ironic tone. With 'The Laundromat', that tendency reaches a grandiloquent extreme."	POS
United States	Richard Lawson Vanity Fair	"[It] is entertaining enough, and many great actors wander through it (...) Still, I hoped for something more nourishing, something that made more satisfying sense out of all this robbery."	NEU
United States	Rory O'Connor The Film Stage	"All credit to Soderbergh’s frequent screenwriter Scott Z. Burns, who has done a fine job of translating Jake Bernstein’s dense non-fiction account of the fiasco into such a zippy, cinematic trip."	POS
United States	Chris Osterndorf The Daily Dot	"Its mission statement would be more deeply felt if what came before wasn’t so inconsistent (…) Rating: ★★½ (out of 5)"	NEU
United Kingdom	Xan Brooks The Guardian	"Soderbergh’s wickedly entertaining romp (...) is an effective mixed wash of truth and fiction (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United Kingdom	Fionnuala Halligan Screendaily	"A poorly-conceived and -executed film (...) Obvious good intentions are drowned in a hot wash of showboating stars and flooded by self-indulgence."	NEG
United Kingdom	Robbie Collin Telegraph	"The cumulative message comes over loud and clear, the fun and indignation make for a tasty, bracing cocktail. This is a film that wields its sledgehammer with panache (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United Kingdom	Geoffrey Macnab The Independent	"Soderbergh is clearly trying to skewer the super-wealthy but the satire here is too lightweight to do them any real damage (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	NEU
Ireland	Donald Clarke Irish Times	"It’s fun. It’s occasionally wise. But it doesn’t feel quite finished (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	NEU
Ireland	Brian Lloyd entertainment.ie	"[It] has its moments and while it's by no means Soderbergh's finest, it's an intriguing and bleakly funny assessment of how the rules don't apply when you're despicably rich (…) Rating: ★★★½ (out of 5)"	POS
Ireland	Paddy Kehoe RTÉ	"An amusing burlesque which won't change the world (...) but it will pass a pleasant ninety minutes or so (…) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"	POS

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The Laundromat

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