Skims the surface of how divisive politics drives wedges between friends and family but tends to lean toward broad comedy to make its point rather than insight.

| Original Score: 2.5/5 | Mar 1, 2021

Writer-director Barinholtz does a good job of spinning a disturbingly plausible premise into a nightmare, but he somehow manages to map our national divisions without shedding useful light on them.

| Original Score: 2.5/5 | Nov 4, 2020

It works for the most part, and captures the tenor of an era when "divisive" politics have grown bad enough to break up friendships, families, and quite possibly our status as a democratic republic.

| Oct 22, 2020

It's a surprisingly impactful and thought-provoking work that manages to make us laugh and think in equal measure.

| Jul 1, 2020

It's to the credit of first-time writer-director Ike Barinholtz that... The Oath will strike some as hopelessly over-the-top, while others, such as your movie critic, can't wait for a second helping.

| Jun 1, 2020

The Oath is an impressive effort at satire that mostly hits the mark before venturing into weird darkness that almost knocks it off the rails.

| Aug 21, 2019

The climax gives all of the initial senseless dark violence some interesting meaning and, despite hit and miss humor, the director presents an interesting political message.

| Original Score: B- | May 23, 2019

No matter where you are on the political spectrum, there's enough truth and questions to wrestle with for audiences to get a kick out of watching the absurdity of The Oath unfold.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Mar 30, 2019

The Oathis timely and relevant because it points a big "fat ass patriot" finger at how politics can confuse and divide families and friends.

| Original Score: 8/10 | Feb 6, 2019

What's too bad is that The Oath loses control of its instrument just as the film's most riveting performance enters the picture.

| Jan 11, 2019

The Oath is a horror movie disguised as political satire and you should watch it -- if only to get the conversation across the table started.

| Original Score: C | Jan 8, 2019

The Oath is one of the year's comedic gems.

| Original Score: B+ | Dec 17, 2018

The Oath does not rise to the level of Pieces of April, but it offers outlandish satire amid family politics in the midst of a national situation that calls for little thanksgiving.

| Nov 21, 2018

Jokey white bro solidarity doesn't seem like the kind of understanding across difference that we need now.

| Nov 21, 2018

The dynamic is familiar and funny... The second half isn't nearly as satisfying, but the film still works as caustic social satire.

| Original Score: B- | Oct 29, 2018

There are funny ideas brought up throughout but they're never fully developed because they're dropped by the second half of the film.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Oct 29, 2018

With his eye keenly trained on the various ways ideology manifests as personality, Barinholtz wrings both hilarity and dread out of the chaotic moment before hope is lost.

| Oct 25, 2018

[Barinholtz] lacks storytelling chops, aiming for wildly provocative satire but instead churning out a technically spotty screed.

| Original Score: 1/4 | Oct 24, 2018

Cranked to eleven at all times, The Oath is meant to mimic the frustrating and often fruitless task of seriously talking about politics in partisan times, but it's so basic and histrionic that it's more off putting than interesting.

| Original Score: 4/10 | Oct 23, 2018

It is in the role of writer/director that Barinholtz adds the most to the film, balancing the quirkier aspects of his characters and their predicament with the notion that something very like this could come to pass. Stranger things are happening.

| Original Score: 3.5/18 | Oct 22, 2018