This Means War | Rotten Tomatoes

This Means War

PG-13

Released Feb 17, 2012

1h 37m

Action

Comedy

List

26%

184 Reviews

Tomatometer

56%

50,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

CIA operatives FDR Foster (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy) are inseparable best friends and partners. Together, their good looks, covert abilities and combat skills rank them among the CIA's elite, but their longstanding personal and professional bond is put to the test when they meet Lauren (Reese Witherspoon). FDR and Tuck both fall hard for the beautiful blonde, turning their deadly skills and an array of high-tech gadgetry against each other in an all-out battle for her love.

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Critics Consensus

A career lowlight for all three of its likable stars, This Means War is loud, clumsily edited, and neither romantic nor funny.

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Giorgio G

Was acceptable to watch once, and then never ever again.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/04/24

Full Review

Sarah E

I like it a lot. I tend to skip the first 10 and last 20 minutes when rewatching it, but the middle part is really fun.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/23/23

Full Review

Alek P

This Means War is a romantic comedy spy film that tries to blend action, humor and romance, but does not succeed on all fronts. The film stars Reese Witherspoon as Lauren, a product-testing executive who is dating two CIA agents, FDR (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy), who are best friends and rivals. The agents use their skills and resources to spy on each other and sabotage their dates with Lauren, while also dealing with a vengeful criminal (Til Schweiger) who is after them. The film has a fun premise, but it doesn't really exploit it fully with a weak script and uneven performances. The plot is predictable, the jokes are mostly clichéd and the action scenes were so shaky and all over the place that I couldn't tell what was going on half the time. The film also suffers from a lack of chemistry between Witherspoon and Pine. Unlike Hardy's smooth-talking character who instantly clicks with Witherspoon's, Pine's character just comes off as a cocky a**hole who forces himself on women. Ultimately, the film tries to be witty and exciting, but it ends up just being dull. However, the film is not without its merits. The supporting cast, especially Chelsea Handler as Lauren's best friend Trish, provides great comic relief with her snarky comments and hilarious advice. The film also has a catchy soundtrack, which is something, I guess. Another highlight of the film is Tom Hardy's performance as Tuck, who (like previously stated) brings charm and depth to his character, which I think shows his versatility as an actor. He is easily the most likable and relatable character in the film (next to Chelsea Handler's character). The film also has some funny moments here and there, mainly the paintball scene (which actually made me laugh out loud). But unfortunately, the pros of the film don't outweigh the cons. In the end, This Means War is a film that shows potential, but includes a cast and direction that fail to fulfill it. It's (at best) mediocre, and (at worst) deplorable. Just an attempt at mixing genres that doesn't work very well. It is not a total disaster, but it's not very impressive either. You won't be missing out much if you watched something else.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

07/26/23

Full Review

Emmanuel C

Overall a good spy action comedy movie, the rivalry to get the girl is fun, reminds me of Michael Jackson's song with Paul Mcartney the girl is mine and the chase scenes were at the end were good. Worth watching.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

05/01/23

Full Review

Miss N

My question is Why tom hardy in this kind of movie

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/09/23

Full Review

jelisije j

Two best friends who are the ultimate action heroes fight over the love a girl in this hilarious comedy.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

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McG

Director

Reese Witherspoon

Lauren

Chris Pine

FDR Foster

Tom Hardy

Tuck

Til Schweiger

Heinrich

Angela Bassett

Collins

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Nell Minow

Movie Mom

Rated: C-

May 19, 2012

Full Review

Donald Clarke

Irish Times

Bathed in bright plastic colours, scored to sleazy jazz funk, This Means War comprises endless short scenes that never quite coalesce into a real motion picture.

Rated: 2/5

Mar 19, 2012

Full Review

Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

McG directs as if on autopilot, and while the action scenes are technically proficient they're so lacking in energy and momentum you kind of wonder if the adrenaline junkie wunderkind threw them in as some sort of afterthought.

Rated: 1/4

Mar 17, 2012

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

Undemanding in the worst ways, the movie’s director and writers have gone to considerable lengths to make this experience as effortless as possible, yet they make it so very difficult to endure.

Rated: 1.5/4

Feb 23, 2023

Full Review

Danielle Solzman

Solzy at the Movies

This Means War depends on audiences buying into a rather predictable premise of two CIA agents falling for the same woman.

Rated: 3/5

May 26, 2022

Full Review

Leigh Paatsch

Herald Sun (Australia)

Be forgiving, and it will probably be enough.

Rated: 2.5/5

Oct 1, 2020

Full Review

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Synopsis

CIA operatives FDR Foster (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy) are inseparable best friends and partners. Together, their good looks, covert abilities and combat skills rank them among the CIA's elite, but their longstanding personal and professional bond is put to the test when they meet Lauren (Reese Witherspoon). FDR and Tuck both fall hard for the beautiful blonde, turning their deadly skills and an array of high-tech gadgetry against each other in an all-out battle for her love.

Director: McG
Producer: Michael Green, Jeff Kwatinetz, Brent O'Connor, Lisa Stewart
Screenwriter: Timothy Dowling, Simon Kinberg
Distributor: 20th Century Fox
Production Co: Overbrook Entertainment, Robert Simonds Productions
Rating: PG-13 (Sexual Content/References|Language|Some Violence and Action)
Genre: Action, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 17, 2012, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Nov 25, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $54.8M
Runtime: 1h 37m
Sound Mix: Datasat, SDDS, Dolby Stereo

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