In The Loop (2009)

This was one of the better political satires I've seen in a long time. Not quite sure if it was worthy of an Oscar nomination, but still very good and very funny.

I'll try to condense the plot as much as possible since there are a lot of stories going on at once. Simon Foster (Tom Hollander) is a high ranking official in the British government, who is also a bit of a buffoon when it comes to keeping his mouth shut. Privately, the US and England are looking into invading a Middle Eastern country, but no decision has been made. Foster publicly states the war is "unforeseeable," which starts a firestorm. That statement turns Foster and his colleagues into hapless pawns by the US State Department and a war hungry general (James Gandolfini).

Based on a Britcom, this is a very biting satire and one that's consistently pushing out one-liners that are not only funny, but actually keep moving the plot along. While everyone was good, the standout was Peter Capaldi as Malcom Tucker, the foul-mouthed political spin man. Hard to tell if he's ever actually solved a problem or just yelled at them all. A little slow moving at first, but really picks up and gets better as time runs on.