Adult World
IFC Films | Release Date: February 14, 2014 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
61
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 19 Critic Reviews
Positive:
10
Mixed:
7
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
Village VoiceStephanie ZacharekFeb 11, 2014
Adult World captures beautifully, and with a great deal of self-deprecating humor, what it's like to feel trapped in a place you think is too small to hold you. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinFeb 13, 2014
Brimming with sharp asides and clever throwaways...plus astute observations on literary pretension and misguided youth, Adult World is a winner. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesBruce IngramMar 6, 2014
Adult World does have some smart, funny and wincingly painful things to say about the desire to make art vs. the desire to be famous for it. Read full review
70
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzFeb 27, 2014
Adult World is a happy surprise. Read full review
70
The New York TimesStephen HoldenFeb 13, 2014
Mr. Cusack’s sardonic, understated portrayal of Rat, who is not quite what he says he is, grounds the movie in a wistfully cynical realism. Read full review
70
SalonAndrew O'HehirFeb 13, 2014
This is a performance of great subtlety, not a caustic caricature: Rat (Cusack) still believes in something, probably still in some Platonic ideal of poetic possibility. Read full review
70
The DissolveMike D'AngeloFeb 12, 2014
Every scene featuring Amy and Rat together is a giddy marvel of kinetic energy, with Roberts and Cusack seemingly in competition to determine which of them can make their character more unsympathetic. Read full review
65
NPRElla TaylorFeb 14, 2014
What's refreshing, though, is Coffey's skeptical but affectionate feel for the tenacious strivers who cling like limpets to the margins of every arts scene, often for precious years of their impoverished lives. Read full review
63
New York PostLou LumenickFeb 12, 2014
Adult World proceeds by fits and starts, but fans of Cusack won’t want to miss his performance as the petulant poet, whose resistance is inevitably worn down by his persistent fan. Read full review
63
McClatchy-Tribune News ServiceRoger MooreFeb 11, 2014
There’s nothing deep in this script, and the delayed romance, between real-life lovers Roberts and Evan Peters (of “American Horror Story”) sets off no sparks. The characters are sort of a grab bag of “types.” Read full review
60
VarietyRonnie ScheibFeb 12, 2014
The improvisational zeal with which Cusack approaches his role (absent from his miscast villainous turn in “The Paperboy”) is particularly fun to watch. Read full review
60
Time OutKeith UhlichFeb 11, 2014
The story beats are as familiar as they come, and there are a few halfhearted stabs at redeeming Roberts’s clueless character when it would have been better to push her feeble-mindedness to Anna Faris–esque extremes. Read full review
58
Portland OregonianJamie S. RichFeb 27, 2014
Adult World is amusing, if a bit by the numbers. Read full review
50
RogerEbert.comSusan WloszczynaFeb 14, 2014
Cusack's distinctive handling of his sullen poet offers an opportunity for Adult World to make a statement about youthful ambition and middle-age disillusionment beyond Billings dubbing Amy and her peers as "Generation Mundane." But the film just stops short of truly achieving that goal. Read full review
50
Film.comJenni MillerFeb 13, 2014
More aggravating than endearing, although there’s an interesting idea buried beneath all the cutesy plot details. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckFeb 12, 2014
The film’s true MVP is Cusack, delivering a wittily subtle and acerbic turn that well displays his gift for deadpan comedy. He elevates the material whenever he’s onscreen, providing hints as to the more interestingly subversive film Adult World might have been. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineDavid Lee DallasFeb 10, 2014
The title of Scott Coffey's new film is a pretty obvious double entendre, but it does efficiently convey the good intentions behind this scattershot production. Read full review
33
The PlaylistGabe ToroJan 17, 2014
Wanting to create a leading character worth rooting for, and experiencing the schadenfreude that comes from her failure, is a complex balancing act, one that Adult World simply cannot pull off. Read full review
25
ObserverRex ReedFeb 12, 2014
Incompetently directed by Scott Coffey and weakly written by Andrew Cochran, a rotten egg called Adult World is anything but. Read full review
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