40 Days and 40 Nights
Miramax Films | Release Date: March 1, 2002 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
53
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 33 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
17
Negative:
3
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
It's very funny, terrifically lively and, considering how awful it might have been, surprisingly tender in its portrait of a young guy who learns sensitivity the hard way.
80
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
Can be taken as a mildly risque frothy date movie, but there's serious subtext for those who choose to look beneath surface sheen. Read full review
80
L.A. WeeklyPaul Malcolm
Hartnett's pitch-perfect sexual panic can be hilariously funny. Read full review
80
Washington PostDesson Thomson
It's funny! It's not Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" or anything, but it's pretty darned good! Read full review
80
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
This is smooth and at times even sensual -- a well-oiled machine. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldCharles Savage
The quality writing, delivered by likable Hartnett and his talented co-stars, makes up for the sometimes flat production. A richly humorous background is provided by well-played eccentric minor characters. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Hartnett shows here a breezy command of his charming, likable character. It is a reminder of his talent and versatility. Read full review
70
VarietyTodd McCarthy
A self-described abstinence comedy that is funny, sexy and silly in equal measure. Read full review
70
Washington PostStephen Hunter
The movie is both exhilarating and depressing. The trouble is, I can't figure out which is more important. Read full review
67
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
A kinder, gentler teensploitation comedy, but Hartnett's Matt, at least, invites the audience to graduate to something better. Read full review
67
Seattle Post-IntelligencerEllen A. Kim
Mostly fun to watch, buoyed by some strong dialogue and performances by the supporting cast. Read full review
63
USA TodayMike Clark
Within a certain narrow range, Hartnett shows some comic flair -- though not enough to carry the picture over its considerable rough spots. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
A curious entry in the current wave of raunchy youth comedies. It's refreshingly free of scatological humor, but even while aiming higher, it can't raise its focus above the belt.
60
Rolling StonePeter Travers
Yup, director Michael Lehmann, far from the glory days of "Heathers," has made a movie about a hard-on, in which he relentlessly pounds a flaccid premise. Read full review
60
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
Runs more smoothly and stylishly than the average teen comedy. Read full review
60
Film ThreatTim Merrill
Any romantic comedy that lacks Meg Ryan can’t be faulted too hard. Read full review
50
New York Magazine (Vulture)Peter Rainer
Sets out to demonstrate that life is about more than having sex. Inadvertently -- I think -- it ends up showing us just the opposite. As if we didn't already know. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
This pretty but witless movie is well-produced, slickly directed -- full of jokes about hot dudes and hot babes pitched right at the "American Pie" crowd. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam Lacey
All this holding back is a bad idea, especially as the subject of an entire movie. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
It's rare that a movie is so graceful and so gross. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineSteve Simels
This is a smart and witty romantic farce that mixes sweet and sexy with surprising aplomb. Read full review
50
Baltimore SunChris Kaltenbach
Eventually becomes cliched, predictable and crude. And that's a real sin.
50
New Times (L.A.)Luke Y. Thompson
Even Hartnett, designated Next Big Thing last year, seems like he's barely trying. Read full review
50
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
If you're desperate to give something up for Lent, make it movies like this one. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleCarla Meyer
Builds up comic force in its first half. But then it blows it, leaving the audience feeling unsatisfied. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeJay Carr
The film's biggest problem, however, is its naive inability to understand that sex comedies, to amuse, must be about more than sex.
50
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
Strictly for boys -- grown-up boys -- the more boyish and less grown-up the better. Read full review
40
Village VoiceDennis Lim
Roughly splits the difference between "Six Days, Seven Nights" and "9 1/2 Weeks." Which is something like the nth-order derivative of an infinite regression. Read full review
40
The New York TimesA.O. Scott
Mildly amusing but wholly unnecessary comedy. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleKimberley Jones
Doesn't do much to further distinguish Lehmann's career. As for those of us waiting for the year's first worthwhile date movie, the wait continues. Read full review
30
The New YorkerDavid Denby
The sensibility of the movie is naggingly adolescent -- less erotic than squeamish and giggly. [11 Mar 2002, p. 92]
30
SalonCharles Taylor
It's too mild to be crass; it's clumsy. Lehmann has made what amounts to an anti-sex sex comedy, the first youth sex comedy made to be enjoyed by those creepy abstinence teens. Read full review
0
New York PostLou Lumenick
So eyeball-gougingly awful that you're tempted to give up movies for Lent. Read full review
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