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  • Official Trailer

Movie Info & Cast

Synopsis

For twenty years, Lionel Macomb (Steve Coogan) has been the reigning king of conservative talk radio, delighting his fans and enraging his opponents with his angry charisma and caustic wit. Lionel spends his days ranting about hot button issues from health care to immigration, shaping the shouted debates of a divided nation. And millions listen.Now Lionel is at a crossroads. He seems bent on sabotaging his relationship with Valerie Gannon (Neve Campbell). He's in a ratings war with his former protégé, Gareth Whitley (Skylar Astin), who has rebranded himself as the kinder, gentler voice of the right wing. He's embroiled in a public spat with a powerful senator (Judith Light). He's in danger of fading into irrelevance.When Lionel's sixteen-year-old niece Tess (Taylor Russell) shows up seeking his help with a family crisis, Lionel must confront the complicated family he's long since left behind. In Tess, Lionel has finally met his match: a smart, determined, brazenly honest sparring partner. Tess is facing her own dilemma, a stark choice between supporting her troubled mother (Tina Benko) or embarking on a lifechanging opportunity she's worked so hard to earn. As this unexpected bond develops, and his career crisis reaches a breaking point, Lionel must decide whether to rethink the power of his words and his legacy. Will he open himself up to a new kind of responsibility and connection? Or will he stay his fiery course, burning anyone who gets too close?

Cast

  • Neve Campbell
  • Steve Coogan
  • Taylor Russell
  • Skylar Astin
  • Pico Alexander
  • Judith Light
  • Lawrence Gilliard Jr.
  • Griffin Newman
  • Judah Friedlander
  • Tina Benko

Atom User Reviews

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Metacritic

70
Aug 23, 2019

What you find is this isn’t a political film about the self-destructive life of a conservative blowhard. It’s a family drama, set in the world of politics with a message of daring to change the conversation by listening to one another.

Metacritic review by Alan Ng
Alan Ng
Film Threat
30
Aug 22, 2019

Neither funny, insightful nor moving, it's mostly objectionable for its failure to exploit the facets of Coogan's screen persona that line up so neatly with the smug blatherers who dominate the AM dial.

Metacritic review by John DeFore
John DeFore
The Hollywood Reporter
30
Aug 22, 2019

The film feints at comedy with background gags and an occasional broad performance or two, but it’s primarily a dramatic story — and not a focused one at that.

Metacritic review by Bilge Ebiri
Bilge Ebiri
The New York Times