De-Lovely
MGM Distribution | Release Date: July 2, 2004 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
53
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 33 Critic Reviews
Positive:
15
Mixed:
14
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
The movie is remarkably touching and engrossing, with Kline's spot-on acting and realistically second-rate singing balancing Judd's one-note performance as his wife. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
A musical and a biography, and brings to both of those genres a worldly sophistication that is rare in the movies. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
De-Lovely is something dishy and rare: a biopic about a happy, and even enchanted, man. Read full review
83
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
Flies so gallantly in the face of what's supposed to work at the movies these days that you just have to love it. Read full review
75
Rolling StonePeter Travers
At its best, De-Lovely evokes a time, a place and a sound with stylish wit and sophistication. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
As a bio-pic, De-Lovely is pretty standard, run-of-the-mill stuff (albeit with an interesting framing device). However, as a "best hits" collection of Cole Porter's music, it is unparalleled. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
Kline, though, does give one of the great movie performances of the year so far. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
This intelligent, postmodern biography from director Irwin Winkler and screenwriter Jay Cocks uses Porter's songs, by turns haunting and hilarious, to decode and reconstruct a life hinted at in the familiar words and music. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy Burr
Turns out to be thoughtful, creative, and generally worthy of its subject, with sins that are more of ambition and miscalculation than of execution. Read full review
70
VarietyTodd McCarthy
Benefits greatly from Kevin Kline's outstanding performance as the ultra-sophisticated songwriter whose resilient marriage anchored a complicated double life. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterKirk Honeycutt
A sprightly musical revue built around Cole Porter songs and a few biographical tidbits culled from his extraordinary life. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleKimberley Jones
Affectionate but uninsightful biopic. Read full review
63
PremiereLaine Ewen
Though director Irwin Winkler takes pains to accurately present Cole's life (unlike "Night and Day," the 1946 biopic starring Cary Grant), the film has its shortcomings. First of which is pushing the love story, when it's clear Linda's feelings aren't reciprocated. Read full review
63
USA TodayClaudia Puig
De-Lovely has its moments of delight. Its defects lie mostly in failing to fully delineate what made musical icon Cole Porter tick. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
There are terrific performances from Kline and Judd, some breathtaking staging and production design, and, of course, some of the best music and lyrics of the 20th century. Read full review
60
Dallas ObserverRobert Wilonsky
Ultimately, it's the songs that energize this highlight, and lowlight, reel; you may forget the movie when you walk out of the theater, but you will do so while humming the soundtrack. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
If Porter's songs are so timeless, why does the movie sound like something that might have played on VH1 five years ago? Read full review
50
L.A. WeeklyElla Taylor
If you're a Cole Porter fan you might like the songs in De-Lovely, but as a portrait of an unusual marriage it's de-lumbering, de-liberate and de-cidedly flat. Read full review
50
The New York TimesStephen Holden
A movie so lifeless and drained of genuine joie de vivre it makes you long for the largely fictional earlier film. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
The resulting awkward, earthbound mishmash thoroughly overshadows Judd and Kline's authentically moving performances. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleRuthe Stein
A mishmash of a musical. The movie never gels -- despite Kline's nuanced performance, the stars' exquisite period clothes, designed by Armani, and, of course, Porter's great songs. Read full review
50
New York PostMegan Lehmann
Twinkles and glows, but all the surface razzle-dazzle fails to mask the emptiness at its core. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderJ.R. Jones
No movie with access to the Cole Porter songbook could be a complete waste of time, but this biopic of the great tunesmith by producer-director Irwin Winkler is all upholstery and no chair. Read full review
50
New York Magazine (Vulture)Peter Rainer
Just because Cole Porter's biography was botched and airbrushed in "Night and Day," starring Cary Grant, doesn't mean De-Lovely, which is up-front about Porter's homosexuality, is a whole lot better. Read full review
50
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
De-Lovely gets hold of a few long-obscured facts but utterly loses the sense of life between the two world wars. I suppose that's progress, of a sort. Read full review
50
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
There are not enough thrilling musical interludes, and few come close to capturing the sly joy in Porter's music. Read full review
40
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
Openly gay and overwhelmingly glum. Read full review
40
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Despite a subject of immense potential -- the movie's surprisingly uninvolving. Read full review
40
EmpireAngie Errigo
Fortunately, the fabulous songs, performed by scads of contemporary artists, provide some relief in an overlong, overdone portrait. Read full review
38
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
This new version may be closer to the Cole Porter biography, but it's hardly any more true to life. There is no life in this movie. It's a brittle contraption of a biopic. Read full review
30
Los Angeles TimesManohla Dargis
Something certainly blows here, but it isn't the archangel's horn. Read full review
30
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
The movie drains Cole and Linda Porter of blood and fills them with embalming fluid. Read full review
20
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
A limited movie that can't animate its subject amid all the tricks and glitz. De-Lovely is devoid of life.
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