Happy Ever Afters 2009 (film)
Burke knows his screwball and he packs in a decent amount of visual and verbal gags to maintain a good pace. Riley and Hawkins play out the dysfunctional comic courtship well and are helped along by the oddball collection of friends and family...
...Taken at face value, Happy Ever Afters has a lot going for it, not least the two lead performances. Film Ireland.net
Still, two nice performances from Hawkins and Riley, and a brilliant debut from youngster Sinead Maguire that will see festive audiences chuckling into their popcorn, make this Irish production just about worthwhile... Big Screen.ie.
Much of the dialogue between Riley and Hawkins is worth savouring and there is a screwball chemistry between the leads that could have flourished in less cluttered territory. Irish Times
There is much chaos in this enjoyable, if paper thin, gigglefest, with much emphasis placed on the fact that, hey, this is an Irish comedy. The storyline has been done before but it’s somewhat saved here by the great playing of the two stars...Breaking News.ie
Lost In Austen 2008 (TV)
In a film full of virtually flawless supporting turns, special mention has to be made of Hugh Bonneville's exceptionally funny Mr. Bennet, Alex Kingston's hysterical (literally and figuratively) Mrs. Bennet, and especially Christina Cole as the calculating Caroline Bingley and Tom Riley as Mr. Wickham, a character quite different from what longtime fans of Pride and Prejudice are going to expect. DVD Talk
The Vertical Hour 2008 (theatre)
The evening's most interesting performance, unexpectedly, comes from Tom Riley, who imbues with pathos and humor Philip's attempts to mediate between the two most important people in his life. But fundamental questions of plausibility weaken his character: if he's so convinced his father is a serial-womanizing liar, why does he bring his beautiful, ambitious girlfriend halfway around the world to meet him? (Because otherwise there would be no play, of course). Variety
Tom Riley also articulates the son's Oedipal hang-ups in a production which, played on a bare stage, offers a thrilling contest of wills between two perfectly-matched opponents. Guardian
Tom Riley's fine Philip betrays the right, furious vulnerability. This Is London
Jeremy Herrin’s laudably clear and uncluttered direction enables the cast to deliver Hare’s thought-provoking dialogue with maximum focus....And Tom Riley shows how Philip’s long-standing antagonism towards his father threatens to undermine his carefully constructed new life. MusicOMH
I Want Candy 2007 (film)
I do have to give a mention to the acting, particularly the two male leads neither of whom I've seen before. Riley is strong as the Producer and shows some good comic timing and acting ability. Filmstalker Review
Much of that comes from the appealing performances from Tom Riley and Tom Burke as the two likeable leads with earnest intentions. Their witty banter never feels forced and there’s enough differentiation and depth to the characters to make them believable and make us root for their success. Digital Spy
As young as they are, Brits Tom Riley and Tom Burke are exceedingly likable, and manage to carry the picture with their good-natured attitudes. DVD Verdict
The performances are extremely likeable. Tom Riley, in particular, combines impeccable comic timing with an infectious charm that really comes across on screen. View London
The two Tom’s (Riley and Burke) also share some nice chemistry and are charismatic enough to suggest brighter things lie ahead. Indie London
Film students Joe and Baggy (Riley and Burke, two good-looking newcomers who can act) earn spare cash videoing funerals - 'We make a drama out of a tragedy'. Their local vid store owner (Jimmy Carr) urges the boys to take their ideas for a film to London and start off with a blue movie. Pictures That Talk
A Few Days In September 2006 (film)
...the performances are good enough to smooth ruffled feathers, with Juliette Binoche only enhancing her charm by adding a steely backbone to her naturally soft, femininet ouch. Sara Forestier and Tom Riley are perfectly comfortable as the two sparring siblings from two different continents who aren't really related and are bound to fall for each other. Screen Daily
Boasting sharp performances by Juliette Binoche as a government agent and John Turturro as a neurotic assassin, plus an off-center love story involving Sara Forestier and Tom Riley, the film combines intrigue, suspense and black humor...
The sparks of their growing relationship into something rather more intimate, as the seen-it-all Irene looks on, provide the warmth of the film, which otherwise is about spies still very much out in the cold. Forestier and Riley develop real chemistry with the bland American boy proving sharper than he looks and the tough French cookie a little more vulnerable than she sounds. The Hollywood Reporter
This young man came out of nowhere to steal the show in a star-studded pic. What he does isn't spectacular, it's the ease with which he does it. Someone give him a lead! Last Night With Riviera
A film which took me by surprise thanks to its immense wit and its unpredictability. Binoche, Turturro and Nolte do some of their finest work, while newcomers Tom Riley and Sara Forestier give the film its heart and its humour. I wish Europeans made more smart genre films such as this one. Last Night With Riviera
Binoche, Forestier and Riley play sharply disparate characters--with a shared past but no real knowledge of each other. And their performances are lively and engaging, often very funny and even flirtatiously sexy as their various interrelationships develop. Shadows On The Wall
Amigorena is happier making clever-clever jokes on the fractious relationship of the American brother (Brit Riley making a good stab at the accent) and French sister Orlando (Perfume’s Forestier), than focussing on the World Trade Center. Sky Movies
Both Tom Riley and Sarah Forestier as the grown up half-siblings are great, matching in fire power as actors. Urban Cinefile
She is the true center, and while Forestier and Riley sweetly do the whole opposites attract thing, we're left to study Binoche, trying to keep everything together. Turturro is a quirk, reciting William Blake's Tyger while he kills a man, and the problem is that his character seems far too eccentric to fit with the much more watchable and natural interplay between Binoche, Forestier, and Riley. It's not just the cover art that does this one something of a disservice, because the blurbs on the back paint A Few Days In September as "pure noir" and "a race against time." Those expecting some sort of Ludlum-y thriller will surely be disappointed in what is ultimately an overlong but often intriguing drama led by three solid performances, where family boundaries mean nothing to young love. Digitally Obsessed
The Entertainer 2006 (theatre)
When Tom Riley, impressively grief-struck as Archie's second son, brings news of catastrophe, the entertainer bursts into song - the single stroke of contrivance in a historic play that bottles the sour essence of Fifties Britain. Evening Standard
The Woman Before 2005 (theatre)
As the plot develops, Andi, who has just bade a final farewell to his spunky girlfriend Tina, also gets drawn in. The wide-eyed Georgia Taylor (like Riley making a successful stage debut) in the latter role is both chorus and comic storyteller. The British Theatre Guide
Richard Wilson directs with exemplary, understated assurance, his strong cast bolstered by a promising professional debut from Tom Riley as Andi. The Telegraph
