Review Roundup: What Did Critics Think of Jon Stewart's IRRESISTIBLE?

From writer/director Jon Stewart comes Irresistible, the comedy of a Democrat political consultant (Steve Carell) who helps a retired Marine colonel (Chris Cooper) run for mayor in a small Wisconsin town. The film is written and directed by Jon Stewart. It is produced by Stewart, Lila Yacoub and Plan B Entertainment's Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner. The film also stars Rose Byrne, Mackenzie Davis, Topher Grace, Natasha Lyonne

Irresistible will be available to watch at home On Demand June 26th.

Find out what critics thought of the film below!

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Owen Gleiberman, Variety:

In theory, "Irresistible" is clever and scathingly illuminating, kind of like the way (in theory) that "Bob Roberts" was back in 1992. In practice, however, the film depends on reveling in most of the clichés and stereotypes it says it's against.

"Irresistible" scores points yet feels behind the curve. You wish it were a bold satirical bulletin, or maybe just Stewart's pricelessly amusing version of a Christopher Guest movie. Instead, the film is a lot like a politician: It makes a big show of leading the viewer, but without rocking the boat.

Pete Hammond, Deadline:

Stewart has perfectly timed this film for our election season which in the Trump era promises to go into dark, dark places, but maybe Irresistible can do what the best satire does and make us look inward before it's too late. After all, as the film points out, the word that is sandwiched in the film's title is "resist."

The interplay between Byrne and Carell is lots of fun to watch as both stars make you instantly believe in their shared history and the way it all comes to a head in a battle royal for the heart of the Heartland, or at least a piece of it.

David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter:

In his second feature as writer-director following his solidly earnest 2014 debut Rosewater, Stewart is in territory that seems a natural extension of his long tenure deconstructing the political landscape with needling precision on The Daily Show. His new movie is a collision of Frank Capra and Armando Iannucci, with a terrific ensemble led by Stewart's old Comedy Central comrade Steve Carell in a role that fits his duality of ingratiating and prickly sides to a T.

Leah Greenblatt, Entertainment Weekly:

What Stewart, who penned the script as well as directed, seems determined to show - or rather tell - his audience is just how far our collective values have strayed when grandstanding takes the place of action, and armchair punditry becomes the enemy of all good faith. That message, alas, isn't just resistible; it's old news.

Linda Holmes, NPR:

Perhaps what makes Irresistible so hard to take at this moment is that it has the swagger of a much smarter movie than it is. It purports to investigate what's gone wrong in American politics but focuses its idea of good Americans on an all-white town where everyone agrees about everything and nothing matters. Small towns only matter in this story because they are, as a single bloc, being mistreated and manipulated and blown about by Washington. It is in this story, and not in the world, that only Washington matters.

Steve Pond, The Wrap:

Sure, "Irresistible" gets some laughs as it tars both Democrats and Republicans with the same brush, and it slides in a few effective shots at the absurdity (and danger) of our system of campaign finance. But while Stewart highlights the word within the word when his film's title, "IRRESISTIBLE," appears on the screen at the end of the movie, that's not enough for this comedy starring Steve Carell to feel current, or even to feel as vital as an average weeknight on "The Daily Show."

Peter Travers, Rolling Stone:

What he is really asking in Irresistible is: In what world is it OK for us to ignore the special interests that have hijacked our electoral process for fun and profit while the people they steal from go without? Stewart is rigorously unsentimental in his approach. He fails to provide backstories for Gary and Faith because their soullessness is what makes them functional - and infectious. But what's our excuse? In a twist ending, Stewart leaves us wondering if gaming the system is preferable to changing it. Can a political satire that dances on the border between silly and profound really make us take off the blinders, even for a few hours?

Sam Adams, Slate:

Irresistible doesn't feel angry so much as disappointed, the product of a man who tried to get us to listen and failed. It's a self-flagellating portrait of coastal liberals that seems of little interest to anyone else, aimed at people who either know everything it has to say or aren't likely to end up seeing it. Irresistible might be a movie for the moment before or the moment after, but it feels entirely out of step with THE ONE it's in.

Brian Truitt, USA Today

Set in the American heartland, the new comedy written and directed by the longtime "Daily Show" host is an insightful satire about partisan divisions, cable news and the influence of money in our elections. It's also often hysterical, with Steve Carell as a liberal city slicker way out of his comfort zone in rural Wisconsin looking for "a new kind of Democrat." Stewart most impresses by hoeing a familiar folksy road before upending expectations, a little Frank Capra crossed with M. Night Shyamalan.

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