The Ghost

Little White Lies“A gradual process of disillusionment...” Yep, he uncovers the movie’s central narrative mechanics on Google. You have to finally throw your hands in the air and admit that the whole movie is actually Polanski being, well, shit...

The Telegraph“Polanski's most enjoyable film for a very long time...” A brooding thriller whose moods – a black spectrum ranging from cynical and conspiratorial to powerless and despairing – have come to dominate contemporary political drama...

The Times“Polanski is a master of claustrophobia...” The director slowly peels the skin off his characters and the layers from the mystery, until we are left with the uncomfortable truth. The windswept, wintry seascapes hype up the tension and desolation...

Channel4 Film“A classy conspiracy thriller with topical political overtones...” Supple, amusing, lightweight entertainment graced with likeable performances and an effective, unobtrusive score...

Time Out film“An adaptation of Robert Harris’s bold and enjoyable novel...” There’s no escaping some laughable plot turns. Can you really unravel the CIA via Google? But the thread of black humour that runs throughout the film compensates for its occasional moments of madness...

Empire“The patter is more Agatha Christie than Alfred Hitchcock...” It’s decent and intriguing enough, but the film’s director has left the fireworks to his private life. Polanski has drawn out strong turns from McGregor and Brosnan (echoing rather than aping Blair) and an excellent one from Olivia Williams...

Total Film “Political suspenser with enough Romanesque flair...” The Ghost has all the craftsmanship you’d expect from Polanski, plus a superb turn from Olivia Williams. Yet it’s too static to get the blood pumping, ultimately feeling like a film made by a man whose most exhilarating work is behind him...

Guardian“Polanski is far from finished as a film-maker...” A gripping conspiracy thriller and scabrous political satire, a Manchurian Candidate for the 2010s, as addictive and outrageous as the Robert Harris bestseller on which it's based...

Variety“All the ingredients are here for a rip-roaring political thriller...” Polanski simply transfers Harris' undistinguished prose direct to the screen and, though the pace picks up marginally in the second half, there's little wow factor in the revelations as they appear...

The Independent“A rip-roaring thriller...” The Ghost isn't vintage Polanski but is still a strangely potent and disorienting film that works on many different levels. Polanski is still capable of turning out a well-crafted and intelligent thriller with bite and irony...