In a World...
Roadside Attractions | Release Date: August 9, 2013 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
79
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 30 Critic Reviews
Positive:
28
Mixed:
2
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
The New York TimesA.O. ScottAug 8, 2013
Ms. Bell, who plays Carol with a perfect blend of diffidence, goofiness and charm, has written and directed an insightful comedy that is much more complex and ambitious than it sometimes seems. Read full review
95
Film.comAmanda May MeynckeApr 23, 2013
In a World… is pretty much a perfect movie, chock full of fun, endless laughter, realistic love and that all-important magical movie ingredient — originality. Read full review
91
The PlaylistKatie WalshApr 23, 2013
While the film is hysterical, its real strength lies in the way it is able to deal with an issue like sexism in the industry and work it out in a funny, honest and very real way. Read full review
90
VarietyJohn AndersonApr 23, 2013
To call Lake Bell a magnetic, intelligent, blithely screwball leading lady in the Carole Lombard tradition might be selling her short. With In a World… , a rollicking laffer about the cutthroat voiceover biz in Los Angeles, she proves herself a comedy screenwriter to be reckoned with. Read full review
88
USA TodayClaudia PuigAug 29, 2013
A clever, likable comedy that sends up sexism, satirizes Hollywood, examines family ties and features a surprisingly tender romance at its core. Read full review
88
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsAug 22, 2013
It’s not only a fresh and funny spoof of the movie business, it represents a real-life triumph within it. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperAug 15, 2013
Before this movie, Lake Bell seemed to have a nice and comfortable career path ahead of her. She was an actress who always provided a spark, whether the vehicle was mundane or first-rate. Now, she’s a name that provokes keen anticipation. Can’t wait to see what Lake Bell the filmmaker does next. Read full review
88
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Adam NaymanAug 15, 2013
A pitch-perfect comedy. Read full review
88
RogerEbert.comOdie HendersonAug 9, 2013
This is a very good movie and perfect summer counterprogramming. Read full review
80
The GuardianMark KermodeSep 15, 2013
A cameo from Geena Davis is particularly tart, and all the better for it. Read full review
80
Time Out LondonAnna SmithSep 10, 2013
Bell goes easy on the preaching and heavy on the laughs without losing her feminist message. Read full review
80
EmpireAli GraySep 9, 2013
Sweet, witty and exquisitely observed, In A World... sees the emergence of an exciting talent: any agents looking for a new triple threat should ring that Bell. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzAug 14, 2013
The world Bell creates in In a World ... is so agreeable and inviting you’ll enjoy the visit. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesBetsy SharkeyAug 8, 2013
In a World… stands as a very entertaining first crack at what one can only hope will be a long career behind the camera. That is where it seems the actress can truly make her mark. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalJohn AndersonAug 8, 2013
The deliriously talented Lake Bell wrote, produced, directed and stars in this peculiar bit of comedy magic, set amid the cutthroat world of Hollywood voiceover artists. Read full review
80
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierAug 8, 2013
It’s hard to imagine the lives behind the voices that are part of the movies. But In a World ..., the debut feature from actress-turned-writer-director Lake Bell, not only gives the people who do movie voice-overs a closeup, it savvily and wittily uses what we hear as a metaphor for what we are. Read full review
80
Village VoiceStephanie ZacharekAug 6, 2013
Bell captures the insularity of certain professional pockets of Hollywood, with all their petty rivalries and backstabbing. But she's sharpest in her exploration of what makes women desire success, and what prevents them from getting it. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterTodd McCarthyApr 23, 2013
A lively, sometimes very funny comedy. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleKimberley JonesAug 21, 2013
An ambitious comedy with not-negligible dramatic depth, but Bell, a first-time feature writer and director, is frankly too generous with her large cast. Read full review
75
Rolling StonePeter TraversAug 30, 2013
In fact, Bell the writer, director, producer and actress knows how to set a savvy trap. While we're laughing, she pulls the rug out, making us see Carol's world as a microcosm for the world every working woman lives in. That she does it with subtlety, humor and touching gravity marks Bell as a filmmaker to watch. Read full review
75
Portland OregonianMarc MohanAug 22, 2013
Bell does a fantastic job of telling a thoroughly feminist story without being strident or didactic. Read full review
75
Washington PostAnn HornadayAug 15, 2013
In a World . . . is a lot of fun, reflecting Bell’s own obvious love of piquant paradox and the music of the spoken word. But it also has a sharply observant streak that makes it as nourishing as it is endearingly nutty. Read full review
75
Boston GlobePeter KeoughAug 15, 2013
In addition to being very funny, In a World . . . also makes a case for women to be, well, heard. But in terms of cohesion and narrative, it doesn’t quite come together as a movie. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleAug 15, 2013
For starters, it's a movie to make you happy to see the next movie written, directed and starring Lake Bell. She has an engaging presence and has a distinct comic sensibility. Read full review
75
New York PostSara StewartAug 9, 2013
My own voice-over would go something like this: “This summer. One woman. Will see this movie. Again.” Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubMike D'AngeloAug 7, 2013
The movie actually does feature a world — the insular voiceover world — and whenever it strays, it falters. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldConnie OgleAug 22, 2013
Its flimsy plot can’t quite support all the characters stuffed into the script, and the movie plays out in a weirdly static way that makes it feel improvised and uneven, leaving a few too much time during which nothing funny is happening. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineOscar MoraldeJul 26, 2013
Lake Bell holds the thing together through sheer charisma, and in fact the foibles of the movie only start to show when she absents herself for extended stretches of time. Read full review
60
The DissolveScott TobiasAug 8, 2013
The film is often a rough, searching, unfocused piece of work, but at a minimum, it affirms Bell as a talent to watch both as an actress and a writer-director, one with a strong, developing comedic sensibility. Read full review
60
Time OutJoshua RothkopfAug 6, 2013
With so many ideas to work with, why does Bell infantilize her elsewhere-confident main character as yet another disheveled woman-child? Read full review
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