Bad Reputation
Magnolia Pictures | Release Date: September 28, 2018 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
66
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 15 Critic Reviews
Positive:
10
Mixed:
5
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Original-CinKim HughesOct 1, 2018
It’s hard to describe exactly how fun it is to watch the performances and archival footage generously offered in Bad Reputation. Suffice to say rock fans with a bellyful of beer will have a ball. Read full review
88
Movie NationRoger MooreSep 24, 2018
It’s no surprise that the story of rock’s original female badass makes for a gritty, inspiring documentary. Read full review
80
The GuardianLeslie FelperinNov 8, 2018
The big treat is seeing Jett herself talk and watching her still-strong bond with producer and best friend Kenny Laguna: two leather-clad old mates, constantly bickering but inseparable. Read full review
80
CineVueKatie DriscollOct 25, 2018
Kevin Kerslake’s Bad Reputation doesn’t explore just Jett’s rock star image and the added layers of hostility and confusion that her gender brings to the term ‘rock star’ but also, how cinema weaves its elements within the world of music, it’s aesthetic and subcultures, cinema and music as creating its own little world. Read full review
80
Time OutJoshua RothkopfOct 3, 2018
A punk call-to-arms about being yourself, this Joan Jett documentary vibrates with attitude and a true spirit of independence. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesNoel MurraySep 27, 2018
The movie balances electrifying archival footage with useful contextual cultural analysis. Read full review
80
Film ThreatAnthony Ray BenchSep 24, 2018
The film captured why Joan Jett is amazing not only as a musician but also as a human being. Read full review
70
The New York TimesGlenn KennySep 27, 2018
The movie chronicles music industry tales of glory and failure. These are dishy, but more interesting is Ms. Jett’s rock ‘n’ roll heart. The stories of how she mentored younger bands are moving. Read full review
70
Film Journal InternationalStephen Whitty Sep 26, 2018
although it’s far too fannish—this is not a movie that wants to dig deep into anything uncomfortable—it does give the rocker her props, while reminding fans of some modern rock history. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Brad WheelerSep 28, 2018
We learn a little about Jett’s activism, and hardly anything about her personal life. Read full review
60
L.A. WeeklyApril WolfeSep 26, 2018
Bad Reputation comes off more as a fanboy’s declaration of reverence to the queen rather than an interrogation of one of the most iconic women in music. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeSep 28, 2018
Despite ample access to its subject and testimonials from both Jett's contemporaries and the younger stars she inspired, the film is a disappointment, and has limited value for viewers hoping to experience (or relive) the years in which Jett proved a woman could rock as hard as the boys. Read full review
50
RogerEbert.comBrian TallericoSep 28, 2018
Joan Jett deserves a great rock doc. This isn't it. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineJake ColeSep 24, 2018
The documentary often struggles to extract deeper thoughts from its subject about her wild career as a pioneering rock feminist. Read full review
40
The Observer (UK)Simran HansNov 8, 2018
This unwillingness to divulge anything truly intimate, combined with the film’s jumbled chronology, gives the whole thing a thin, Wikipedia-ish feel. Jett says she wants to offer her fans “a primal release”. A pity, then, that this film about her is so repressed. Read full review
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