Metacritic reviews

Chris Rock gets to direct himself, and as a result is finally starring in a laugh-out-loud funny movie.

An imperfect movie, but not a boring one and not lacking in intelligence.

The gags come fast and furious, and though some are a little stale, Rock and cowriter Ali LeRoi strive for wit over crudity.

The key term here is "fairy tale," because, although the movie occasionally tries for dramatic moments, they're overplayed, undercooked, and divorced from reality.

After all is said and done, it seems like the jokes during the end credits are the tow truck of the movie, the engine quitting after the halfway point.

Chris Rock was busy directing, producing, co-writing and starring in this light comedy. Given his hilarious stand-up routines, one wishes he had spent a little more time on the script.

Pandering, stiffly acted and brimming with awkward (if progressive) political posturing, Rock's films attempt to filter old Hollywood formula through a hip-hop sensibility.

The difference between Head of State and a good comedy is like the difference between Chris Rock and a real actor.

There’s only the faintest glimmer of Rock’s talent for piercingly funny humor here, a shortcoming for which the comic can only blame himself, given that he also produced and directed the movie.

An excruciatingly amateurish production.