Happy Here and Now
IFC Films | Release Date: December 14, 2005 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
60
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 11 Critic Reviews
Positive:
7
Mixed:
2
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
L.A. WeeklyScott Foundas
Since premiering on the festival circuit in 2002, this small masterpiece has been one of the best films around not to secure a proper theatrical release, and while one week on a single L.A. screen at the height of the crowded holiday season may not exactly qualify as proper, it's nevertheless a joyous happening. Read full review
80
VarietyScott Foundas
Isn't for everyone. It seems certain to confound as many viewers as it will inspire. But pic will foster a core critical contingent that will find itself transfixed and, ultimately, deeply moved by the film's ravishing power. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
This is a droll, laid-back film noir steeped in Crescent City atmosphere and music that culminates in the colliding worlds of genuine and virtual reality. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterDavid Hunter
Beautifully acted and filmed, with the Internet imagery rendered in Pixelvision. Read full review
70
Village VoiceDavid Ng
When Amelia takes the full multimedia plunge in the movie's final moments, Happy becomes something inexplicably (and metaphysically) beautiful. Read full review
70
SalonAndrew O'Hehir
It's perhaps most remarkable as a sweet, mysterious portrait of pre-flood New Orleans, which Almereyda not incorrectly portrays as a land of wandering, uncertain souls. Read full review
63
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
The soundtrack includes great songs by Andre Williams and Shirley Ellis, and music by local R'n'B legend Ernie K-Doe and electronic organ freakazoid Quintron, who both appear in the film. Read full review
50
The New York TimesManohla Dargis
Like some other contemporary films that try to stitch together a small army of characters into a community of sorts, Happy Here and Now feels like a symptom in search of a cure. Read full review
40
Film ThreatTim Merrill
Rarely interesting, always confounding. Read full review
38
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
A few relevant themes do bubble up from this visually intriguing swamp of self-indulgence, but Arquette's pseudo-philosopher seems to speak for Almereyda when he says, "If there was a point, there wouldn't be a story." Read full review
25
New York PostV.A. Musetto
Almereyda's muddled Happy Here and Now should have stayed on the shelf - where it's been gathering dust for several years. Read full review
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