Bull
Samuel Goldwyn Films | Release Date (Streaming): May 1, 2020 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
65
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 18 Critic Reviews
Positive:
14
Mixed:
3
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
RogerEbert.comNell MinowMay 1, 2020
The characters don't or don't want to say much about what they are thinking or show much about what they are feeling. They lie a lot. But the patient, observant camera captures the sensitive performances by Havard and Morgan, and they are never less than eloquent and honest. Read full review
88
Movie NationRoger MooreApr 27, 2020
It’s everything a screen drama and indie film should be — a novel story, characters we rarely see and care about and immersion in a world we know nothing about. Read full review
83
The PlaylistCaroline TsaiMay 16, 2019
A sensitive, if occasionally orthodox, treatment of a compassionate friendship enacted in the face of societal apathy. Read full review
80
Rolling StoneDavid FearMay 4, 2020
The reason you need to see Bull, however, and we do not use that verb lightly, is Morgan. The calm, concentrated, understated manner in which he presents this man, who’d rather have a battered body than a bruised pride, is something to behold. Read full review
80
New York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinMay 1, 2020
Annie Silverstein’s Bull doesn’t jerk you around. It doesn’t Go for It. It’s quieter and more pensive than a glib summation (or a trailer) would suggest, but it never goes soft. Read full review
78
TheWrapSteve PondMay 16, 2019
A tough but affecting film ... The fact that this never comes across as maudlin is tribute to a director who knows her way through dark places, and a pair of actors who can create a quiet storm. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy BurrApr 30, 2020
Bull is one of those quiet heartland indie dramas that can serve as a tonic after a steady diet of blockbuster. It’s about human connection, which is much on people’s minds in these days of global pandemic. And it’s about rodeo bull riders, a group of people I’ve always thought should have their heads examined. Read full review
75
The Film StageJared MobarakApr 29, 2020
While the uncertain nature of the sport lends a suffocating tension to the whole, the complexity of [Morgan's] character’s day-to-day struggle as a man who knows nothing else does too. Read full review
75
IndieWireEric KohnMay 15, 2019
Director Annie Silverstein doesn’t elevate these conventions to new heights, but understands their potential well enough to craft an absorbing window into marginalized lives. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesNoel MurrayApr 30, 2020
The relative lack of “action” in Bull does mean the audience has to make more of an effort to engage with the film. But like the recent arthouse favorites “The Rider” and “Lean on Pete,” this movie has a rare sense of place. It preserves an entire world and the fragile people within it. Read full review
70
Film ThreatAlan NgMay 17, 2019
I like that Bull is shot beautifully in a slice-of-life style of storytelling. ... It’s a subtle tale about the bonds of friendship in times of hopelessness. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterJon FroschMay 15, 2019
This is an affecting, admirably disciplined first film, one that patiently enfolds you rather than pandering for your attention. Read full review
70
Screen DailyTim GriersonMay 15, 2019
A slow-burn drama with familiar contours but a sure sense of place and a great deal of restrained empathy. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleSteve DavisApr 16, 2020
While admirably eschewing any "God’s Little Acre"-like sensationalism, the movie has little compelling dramatic energy. While the near-absence of emotional commotion doesn’t hobble Bull, there’s no question it keeps it tied down. Read full review
58
The A.V. ClubIgnatiy VishnevetskyApr 28, 2020
The movie has the style down pat: nonprofessional actors, un-enticing handheld camerawork, and a bevy of deteriorating exurban backdrops. But Silverstein’s sympathetic patience for her self-sabotaging characters is enough to keep one interested in what might happen to these people well past the point where it becomes clear that nothing will. Read full review
50
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisApr 30, 2020
While Silverstein’s commitment to authenticity is admirable (she spent years visiting backyard rodeos across Texas, talking with the participants), her narrative is too tamped-down and languorous to catch hold. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineChuck BowenApr 26, 2020
Director Annie Silverstein tries to enrich the tropes of her class-conscious buddy scenario by canceling them out. Read full review
30
VarietyPeter DebrugeMay 15, 2019
A disappointment ... The story feels lean, and most of the cast, while convincing, don’t leap off the screen the way the ensemble in an Andrea Arnold movie does. Read full review
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