A League of Ordinary Gentlemen
Magnolia Pictures | Release Date: May 27, 2005 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
66
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 17 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
4
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
Film ThreatEric Campos
Geared to please audiences of all tastes. Read full review
80
VarietyRonnie Scheib
Chris Browne's sense of humor captures perfectly the contradictions, absurdities and drama at the intersection of class, media, money and sports without dissing any of his player/subjects. Read full review
80
SlateDavid Edelstein
hilarious, sometimes rueful, and strangely hip documentary. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKevin Crust
Informativeand endearing film. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
If you want a whiff of how unironic the 1970s were, consider bowling, a sport that on any given weekend was broadcast (usually on ABC) with the hushed solemnity of a moon launch. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
While the movie is strong on the history of its subject, it allows some yawns to enter its own account of a big, heavily hyped tournament. Still, it's very entertaining. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
If ever a movie could convince the masses to don communal shoes, this is the one. Read full review
75
New York PostKyle Smith
If there is a poetry to losing, then this film has as much as the collected works of John Milton. Read full review
75
USA TodayMike Clark
As easy to enjoy as picking up a spare, and we don't mean a tire around the waist. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterMichael Rechtshaffen
Browne keeps it amusingly involving. Read full review
70
The A.V. ClubNoel Murray
Narrows as it goes, and Browne doesn't do enough with the idea of a corporate takeover of a grassroots recreational activity, but Weber's antics and his colleagues' reactions make for fine drama all on their own. Read full review
70
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
Christopher Browne's fun, surprisingly exciting film probably won't convert anyone convinced that bowling is something you do while downing fish sticks and beer. But it may teach them a newfound respect for the sport's champions. Read full review
70
SalonAndrew O'Hehir
Following four players through the first season of Miller's regime, Browne captures not just a high-energy sports spectacle played out in the bowling megaplexes of outer suburbia but, even more interestingly, a clash of cultures between bowling's hallowed past and its possible future. Read full review
60
Village VoiceJoshua Land
Christopher Browne's entertaining A League of Ordinary Gentlemen goes behind the scenes of the Professional Bowlers Association's comeback bid following the league's 2000 sale (for a mere $5 million) to a trio of retired Microsoft execs. Read full review
50
The New York TimesJanet Maslin
Directing his first feature, Christopher Browne shows flair and determination in getting the movie's pathos down pat, but he can't quite find enough that is pleasurable in its many reels. Read full review
50
L.A. WeeklyScott Foundas
The movie is affectionate without exactly being infectious, and Browne, who begins his film with the Michael Moore–esque revelation that Americans bowl in greater numbers than they vote, disappoints by not devoting more attention to bowling in its amateur incarnations. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
The first 15-20 minutes of this documentary are solid gold. Read full review
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