Around the Bend
Warner Independent Pictures (WIP) | Release Date: October 8, 2004 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
46
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 31 Critic Reviews
Positive:
7
Mixed:
18
Negative:
6
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
USA TodayClaudia Puig
A bittersweet relationship drama with enough honest emotion and gentle humor to move even the steeliest heart. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterRichard James Havis
Slick, well-packaged emotional drama. Read full review
70
L.A. WeeklyRon Stringer
The final revelation which, however anticipated, however contrived, stings just enough to make it feel like life. Read full review
70
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
Mr. Walken performs with a marvelously minimalist precision.
67
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
A fine, familial elixir to remedy despair and soften hardened hearts, Around the Bend is likely just the first of many feathers in Roberts shiny new directorial cap. Read full review
63
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The movie, unfortunately, doesn't really work; it's one of those films where the characters always seem to be Behaving, as if ordinary life has to be jacked up into eccentricity. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick Groen
Who would have guessed that, among all the cutesy curves in Around the Bend, the guy walking the straightest line is Christopher Walken? Read full review
60
VarietyEddie Cockrell
Self-consciously mannered yet fitfully interesting, Around the Bend gets the most mileage it can from the eccentric, low-key charisma of Christopher Walken. Read full review
60
Chicago ReaderStaff (Not credited)
Roberts never surmounts the cracker-barrel contrivance of the plot, but his low-key humor, clear affection for the characters, and strong cast are enough to put this gentle drama across. Read full review
60
EmpireDavid Hughes
One of those films that seems like it was made mainly for film festivals - and it has the awards to show for it. Read full review
50
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
The story is spotty, but the acting is fine, especially when Walken is around. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesCarina Chocano
Gentlemen, it's a male chick flick - "The Dirty Secrets of the Ya-Ya Brotherhood." Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
An awkward amalgam of road movie, buddy comedy and melodramatic conventions, first-time writer-director Jordan Roberts' male weepie ricochets between affecting scenes and insufferably maudlin ones. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
Might as well have been titled "That Kentucky Fried Chicken Movie." That's how it will be referred to, anyway, though some people may insert an adjective such as "convoluted," "disappointing," or "anti-climactic" before the name of the fast-food franchise. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubTasha Robinson
There are good ideas in Around The Bend, but they're presented in outline form, as the bare, dry bones of what could have been a living body. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
Around the Bend doesn't inspire one to care. Read full review
50
Seattle Post-IntelligencerSean Axmaker
Writer/director Jordan Roberts aims for heartwarming drama and settles for tepid entertainment. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeTy Burr
The result is a curious hash: warmly funny in the comic scenes and shamelessly sentimental during the sad bits, of which there are many. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChroniclePeter Hartlaub
For the silent masses who cherish those "Hallmark Hall of Fame" specials, but wish they had just a little more profanity, the release of Around the Bend is occasion to rejoice. Read full review
50
Portland OregonianM. E. Russell
Plays like a certain brand of indie film I hadn't seen in a while: the Self-Consciously Odd Journey of Self-Discovery Through the American Southwest, in which people learn Important Life Lessons while encountering "colorful" characters in small-town diners and motels amid the tumbleweeds. Read full review
50
Baltimore SunChris Kaltenbach
What makes the film work better than its nearly unbearable cuteness suggests is the casting of Christopher Walken as the son; the movie has yet to be invented that Walken can't improve simply by showing up. Read full review
50
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
If nothing else, director/screenwriter Jordan Roberts knows good music. If only we could say the same about his script. Read full review
42
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
It's the showy story, script, and even staging that wear a fella out in this relentlessly precious feature debut by writer-director Jordan Roberts. Read full review
40
The New York TimesManohla Dargis
A heavily padded, thinly conceived, well-meaning movie. Read full review
40
Dallas ObserverRobert Wilonsky
The movie comes off as willfully eccentric when it should have been charmingly touching. Read full review
38
New York PostLou Lumenick
The longest 85-minute road trip you could imagine. Read full review
38
Chicago TribuneAllison Benedikt
A well-intentioned, ill-conceived blip of a movie that just happens to star two of the most esteemed actors of our time--Michael Caine and Christopher Walken. Read full review
38
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
As a vegetarian, I'm grateful that Around the Bend -- an extended commercial for KFC passing itself off as a heartwarming family drama -- is a loser. Read full review
30
Village VoiceJoshua Land
Veers deep into male-weepie territory. Read full review
30
Washington PostDesson Thomson
First-time filmmaker Jordan Roberts worked on this project for years, but merely ended up with dreary cliche. Read full review
30
Washington PostStephen Hunter
So programmatic, so dogged in hitting the right steps at the right time that it completely lacks spontaneity. Read full review
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