How Do You Know
Columbia Pictures | Release Date: December 17, 2010 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
46
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 38 Critic Reviews
Positive:
14
Mixed:
17
Negative:
7
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
St. Louis Post-DispatchCalvin WilsonDec 17, 2010
A bit slow to get started, and it's nowhere near as funny as "The Hangover." But it'll make you smile. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyDec 16, 2010
It is a keenly observed movie about loss of identity and finding love, in which Brooks serves up funny-ouch humor with slapstick heartbreak. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsDec 16, 2010
It's relaxed without being sloppy, or patronizing, and in particular Witherspoon and Lemmon - sorry, make that Rudd - bring charm to burn. Read full review
75
MovielineMichelle OrangeDec 15, 2010
There are a couple of scenes of pure, sentimental genius, as well as appealingly boggled turns by Rudd and Wilson. Read full review
70
TimeRichard CorlissDec 20, 2010
Yeah, well, I still like the film. Read full review
70
SalonAndrew O'HehirDec 17, 2010
In essence, the movie is an ungainly but irresistible romantic-triangle comedy built around Rudd, Reese Witherspoon and Owen Wilson, with Nicholson rambling around its periphery like a demonic bear, part comic relief and part distraction. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderJ.R. JonesDec 16, 2010
The result is highly entertaining but hardly ranks with the director's best work; a dramatic subplot involving the money guy and his corrupt father (a disengaged Jack Nicholson) never gains traction. Read full review
70
Village VoiceElla TaylorDec 14, 2010
Not that How Do You Know doesn't have its moments of shamelessly entertaining shtick, much of it furnished by Nicholson (watch for a very funny visual gag about his proclivities for much younger women) and by Wilson as Lisa's current squeeze. Read full review
67
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerDec 17, 2010
Best when it's morphing into seriousness. Too often the comic bits seem like sops to the audience. Read full review
63
Washington PostAnn HornadayDec 23, 2010
It's the kind of movie that succeeds as a culmination of moments that ring true and sweet. Read full review
63
New Orleans Times-PicayuneMike ScottDec 17, 2010
How do you know when a romantic comedy just isn't working? Key indicators are that your audience doesn't get goose bumps in the inevitable third-act reunion. They don't get misty-eyed. In short, they don't really care. Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliDec 16, 2010
The problem with the film has little to do with the central triangle, which is engaging enough in a formula-driven way, but with the myriad uninteresting subplots that dot the cinematic landscape and have the unfortunate effect of padding the proceedings to the point of unwieldiness. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeWesley MorrisDec 16, 2010
The experiment in the new movie is this: What happens when his Type A's are forced out of their comfort zones? If only Brooks had managed to leave his. How Do You Know feels like a collection of scenarios he's done better. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldRene RodriguezDec 16, 2010
The movie is all surface and trades on fortune-cookie wisdom. Read full review
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