Dead Man's Wire
| Release Date: January 9, 2026 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
67
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 34 Critic Reviews
Positive:
23
Mixed:
11
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
The IndependentClarisse LoughreyApr 2, 2026
Where in the public consciousness is the line drawn between thief and Robin Hood? Van Sant may ask the question, but his vision’s too narrow to answer it. Read full review
60
Little White LiesLeila LatifMar 24, 2026
Van Sant directs with a steadiness that occasionally borders on pastiche. He resists sensationalism, which is no small feat given the bombastic source material. The hostage sequences are gruellingly tense, but the film never quite finds a rhythm beyond escalation, monologue, negotiation, repeat. For a story and subject this strange, the filmmaking flourishes are conservative. Read full review
60
EmpireJohn NugentMar 16, 2026
Van Sant’s previous historical fictions have been more incisive, but this is a tense crime thriller, with a solid new addition to Bill Skarsgård’s rogues’ gallery of scumbags. Read full review
60
Next Best PictureCody DericksSep 4, 2025
while there are certainly entertaining moments throughout, Van Sant’s interpretation of this forgotten true crime story is simply not as exciting as it should be – and clearly wants to be. Read full review
58
The A.V. ClubAndrew CrumpJan 8, 2026
This is Van Sant’s Dog Day Afternoon moment. Judged solely by Skarsgård’s scenes, Dead Man’s Wire makes for an insightful and tense portrait of its subject. But judged by the limits of its perspective, the film is narrow to the story’s detriment. Read full review
50
The RevealScott TobiasJan 16, 2026
Dead Man’s Wire is a curious shrug of a movie, especially from a director like Gus Van Sant, who has picked up some ho-hum work-for-hire assignments in the past, such as Finding Forrester or Promised Land, but usually puts some more spin on the ball. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Saffron MaeveJan 16, 2026
The film shifts its tone like an evasive minnow, at once circling the familiar visual grammar of true crime media and the slapstick fancies of a buddy comedy. Read full review
50
The New YorkerRichard BrodyJan 12, 2026
Unfortunately, the film only hints at its larger ambitions and leaves them undeveloped. The story is told mainly methodically, sometimes deftly, but with little verve, relying on a generalized sensitivity that never approaches imaginative curiosity. It holds attention as a yarn but doesn’t build the incidents of its plot into a world view. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesAmy NicholsonJan 9, 2026
The result is a faintly comic curio that hurtles along without much impact. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleRichard WhittakerJan 8, 2026
For all the effort that Van Sant and his team put into making Dead Man’s Wire look like 1970s Indianapolis, its ability to really summon the spirit of the era only goes skin deep. Read full review
40
The New York TimesBen KenigsbergJan 8, 2026
When Dead Man’s Wire ends with footage of the real Kiritsis and Hall, it is hard not to conclude that a much crazier, livelier film could have been made. Read full review
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