Whoever said that curse words were neither big nor clever had clearly never heard Peter Capaldi master a diatribe of censor-baiting expletives.

In The Loop was released on DVD this week and, although it may have a dirty mouth, it is one of the funniest British films of the decade.

In The Loop takes a look at Minister Simon Foster (Tom Hollander), having to deal with the aftermath of a fumbled statement on war, finding himself dealing with US officials who want to use him for their own political agendas. Meanwhile he has to deal with his constituency problems (involving Steve Coogan and a falling wall) and the PM’s spin doctor Malcolm Tucker (Capaldi) making his ears bleed from a constant verbal barrage.

In The Loop is engaging, hilarious and as well-timed as anyone could hope for. The tale of a bumbling Minister, fumbling his way through government all over the globe doesn’t just make for great entertainment – it’s also scarily accurate. It’s about time that we had some truly biting political satire, and it’s a pleasure that it comes from the UK.

In The Loop is directed by Armando Iannucci and it may be familiar to some as a spin-off from the BBC comedy series The Thick Of It. Iannucci manages to bring together a gifted group of actors who all get their chance to shine in different ways, making for a cracking ensemble. Using the same style for both the show and the film was a bold move but the realism presented with the docu-style filmmaking strips away the sheen of government buildings and US department hallways, making for a refreshingly mundane atmosphere.

Hollander makes for a particularly doughy, self-absorbed sap. Leading most of the film, he’s a character so idiotic that he can only be believable, the chaotic political whirlwind swallows him up and becomes confusing for both him and the audience. In the end though, that is the point. Politics confuses the politicians to such an extent that you can only sit back and laugh. Or cry.

It’s hard to really dig deep into In The Loop – it flies by with the ferocity of the foul-mouthed tirades of Malcolm Tucker and has a bolstering cast of fascinating and hilarious characters. The US actors give just as much as the UK, including James Gandolfini‘s General, whose calm, bitter attitude makes for a delightful antithesis to Capaldi. There’s too much to praise here, further demonstrated by half an hour of deleted scenes which may not add anything to the story but remain as engaging and funny as the feature itself.

This is a rare British film, one with rich characters, belly laughs and an intelligent plot to boot. Capaldi and Hollander make for two fantastic characters, and they’ve got ample support. It may be the most starkly relevant piece of cinema of the last few years and one that will sit among Britain’s proudest output for years.

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In the early 20th Century, the Suffragette movement fought and campaigned to give women independence and the vote, but what has modern woman done with this privilege?

They’ve made Hope Springs, what a waste.

The opening scenes draw heavily from Hustle, and any prison based drama you can think of. Throughout proceedings the viewer is reminded of the sanctity of sisterhood, sisters doing it for themselves, female empowerment, bra burning, and some other related cliché.

It is ludicrous of course; we all know that women aren’t capable of conjuring plans, ideas, or thoughts of their own. As a result we’re quickly reminded that this is a work of TV fiction, it isn’t real. That and the slightly surreal nature of the programme mean you never get drawn into realms of reality or silly things like that.

Fans of expletives might recognise Paul Higgins of The Thick of It and In The Loop, other pleasant actor-y related surprises include One Foot In The Grave veteran Annette Crosbie and woman of many voices, Ronni Ancona.

Here’s as much of the plot we can describe before our eyes start bleeding. Four lady ex-cons plan to fly off to a sunnier climate as a reward for serving a just punishment for past crimes with ill-gotten funds. However, a small snag sends things awry and they are forced to stay in a Scottish hotel called Hope Springs. The name of the series is Hope Springs. Most of the dialogue revolves around the fact that English people and Scottish people sound different, and that they inherently hate each other.

It is possible to derive enjoyment from this debut episode simply by trying to ascertain whether the main character is played by Tracy-Ann Oberman or not, well it isn’t, it’s Alex Kingston. There, now you’ve no reason to watch it.

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Folded:

• In the Loop (more creative swearing than you’ll ever need)
• Stewart Lee (for having the stones to allow his recent awful TV show to air at all)
• Vintage ice creams (good old Freaky Feet. Though spot the one that shouldn’t be there)
• Laughing at people attempting to have a picnic in lukewarm sunshine (bet that tin of Frutini is transporting you right to Bondi beach, isn’t it?)
• gamesTM (far, far, far and away the best video games magazine on the market)

Creased:

• This hair (belongs on a man who only ever wears black 501s)
• BBC2 not showing the second season of The Wire straight away (‘in a few weeks’ they say. ‘Mid May’ we’ve heard. When’s season three going out then? Christmas Day?)
• V-Water (the orange one smells like baby piss. Probably tastes like it too, you’ll have to ask around to confirm that)
• Desperate Housewives anti-climax (kill a character somebody might care about why don’t ya?)
• Picturehouse cinemas (full of poncy tossers who think that smiling is only for those without a post-grad education)