Atropia

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1:54

Atropia

R

2025

1h 44m

Comedy

Drama

War

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Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

41%

Tomatometer

61 Reviews

Popcornmeter

Fewer than 50 Ratings

Fayruz is the star thespian of Atropia, a fake country the US military has devised for immersive training. Though she takes great pride in her work, Fayruz believes her tenure here is but a stepping stone on the way to an illustrious acting career in Hollywood. When she meets Abu Dice, an experienced soldier playing the role of an insurgent, their romance quickly threatens their respective ambitions and questions their allegiance to the military and Atropia's purpose. Set on the eve of Bush's "surge", the bloodiest year of the war, Atropia is a comedic love story cast against a uniquely absurd American backdrop.

Critics Consensus

Atropia's satirical farce of a militarized industrial complex is buoyed by Alia Shawkat's committed performance to a point, but ultimately succumbs under the weight of its own pretense.

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Bob Mondello

NPR

Dec 12

The setup's fun, the payoff less, but it's amusing.

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Clint Worthington

RogerEbert.com

Dec 12

2.5/4

‘Atropia' feels like Gates gesturing vaguely at a few really interesting notions about the military-entertainment complex, and how it can bleed through into the people waging the actual war.

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Glenn Kenny

New York Times

Dec 11

The cast, also featuring Tim Heidecker, Chloë Sevigny and Channing Tatum, is charismatic and at times piercingly funny.

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Dionar Hidalgo

Algo Más Que Cine

Apr 25

4/10

An ambitious but uneven debut. While Shawkat and Turner provide genuine spark, Gates’ satire gets lost in its own desert. It captures the bizarre details of military simulations but fails to land its political punches, feeling hollow by the end.

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Scott Howard

Under the Radar

Apr 8

5.5/10

With some good comedy, great cast chemistry, and surprisingly deep moments, viewers won’t regret having watched this movie even if it’s not particularly memorable.

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Nuha Hassan

Nuha Hassan (Medium)

Feb 21

There’s nothing heartwarming or fun about watching this movie. Atropia is a movie that loses its way from the beginning and doesn’t know when to stop.

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Nicole

Feb 5

This is such a fun movie!!! Truly impressed by the effortless blend of social commentary and comedic beats. Show stopping cast and great performances!

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Doin

Feb 3

Great satire! A contemporary take on MASH. I enjoyed the tone of the humor, subject matter & general world that the film created around a fascinating component of the US military industrial (entertainment) complex. Like all great satires this film struck a perfect balance between salient realism and humanistic folly. A must watch if you ask me!

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WeLikeHim

Jan 30

Hilarious. Poignant. So much fun. Go watch and be surprised!

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M in Pasadena

Jan 25

Loved it! A military satire thats both funny and sexy. The jokes land and the look backwards to the absurdity of the war in Iraq is poignant. Ill watch it again. Quick moving, satisfying watch.

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Sarah

Jan 24

Hilarious and chilling. Important now more than ever. Price of war. It doesnt have to be this way. Go see in theater!

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Sheldon h

Jan 23

Smart, sassy, relevant, hilarious, original & brilliant. Dont walk run & see Atropia in a theatre. Thank me later.

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Hailey Gates

Director

Alia Shawkat

Fayruz

Callum Turner

Abu Dice

Jane Levy

Nancy

Chloë Sevigny

Pina

Zahra Alzubaidi

Noor

Atropia: Trailer 1

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Synopsis

Fayruz is the star thespian of Atropia, a fake country the US military has devised for immersive training. Though she takes great pride in her work, Fayruz believes her tenure here is but a stepping stone on the way to an illustrious acting career in Hollywood. When she meets Abu Dice, an experienced soldier playing the role of an insurgent, their romance quickly threatens their respective ambitions and questions their allegiance to the military and Atropia's purpose. Set on the eve of Bush's "surge", the bloodiest year of the war, Atropia is a comedic love story cast against a uniquely absurd American backdrop.

Director: Hailey Gates
Producer: Luca Guadagnino, Naima Abed, Emilie Georges, Lana Kim, Jett Steiger
Screenwriter: Hailey Gates
Distributor: Vertical
Production Co: Frenesy Films, Paradise City, Ways & Means
Rating: R (Language and Sexual Material)
Genre: Comedy, Drama, War
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 12, 2025, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 27, 2026
Box Office (Gross USA): $14.4K
Runtime: 1h 44m