3 Backyards
Screen Media Films | Release Date: March 11, 2011 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
69
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 9 Critic Reviews
Positive:
6
Mixed:
3
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
VarietyJohn AndersonMar 7, 2011
Helmer-writer Eric Mendelsohn returns with his first feature in a decade and the proposition that art film still has a place in the world -- which is an exhilarating idea, especially as represented by 3 Backyards, an exquisite example of calculated execution in pursuit of elusive ideas. Read full review
80
Boxoffice MagazineSteve RamosMar 12, 2011
It's worth remembering that eleven years passed between "Judy Berlin" and 3 Backyards, both of which earned Mendelsohn best director prizes at Sundance. Read full review
80
The New York TimesStephen HoldenMar 10, 2011
Mr. Mendelsohn's ability to evoke a child's-eye view of a suburban environment is the most seductive element in a movie whose primary attraction is an atmosphere so heady that you can almost taste it. Read full review
80
Village VoiceNick PinkertonMar 8, 2011
Mendelsohn's first film since 1999's "Judy Berlin" is devoted to finding descriptive correlatives to liminal emotional states through the cast's eloquent reaction shots and the camera's depiction of homely environments - with ornate, flowing visual vocabulary. Read full review
80
New York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinMar 7, 2011
The movie has none of the smugness of "­American Beauty": You could dream of living in a world like this. Read full review
63
New York PostLou LumenickMar 11, 2011
Well-acted and acutely observed. Read full review
60
Time OutAlison WillmoreMar 8, 2011
Only Falco gets beyond being merely a symbol for suburban angst. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterDuane ByrgeMar 7, 2011
Smartly observed and precisely visualized, 3 Backyards is nonetheless a bore: We never care for any of the characters and their lives of "quiet desperation." Read full review
40
New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanMar 11, 2011
From the insistently discordant score to each overthought shot, this triad of stories feels self-conscious and deliberately arty rather than heartfelt. Read full review
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