Intermission
DreamWorks Distribution | Release Date: March 19, 2004 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
64
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 27 Critic Reviews
Positive:
18
Mixed:
7
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
San Francisco ChronicleRuthe Stein
A breed apart from anything coming off the Hollywood assembly line or, for that matter, from the saccharine romances Britain has lately produced. Read full review
91
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
The first Irish creation I've seen in ages to pull off the high-difficulty feat of trafficking in grit, drollery, and emotion without turning to blarney as a crutch. Read full review
90
Washington PostDesson Thomson
So full of pep you can't help surrendering to its creative energy. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
That it succeeds is some kind of miracle; there's enough material here for three bad films, and somehow it becomes one good one. Read full review
80
The New York TimesA.O. Scott
Altogether compelling. Read full review
80
Washington PostMichael O'Sullivan
Very, very funny, thanks to a lively first script by Mark O'Rowe, who has a good ear for earthy dialogue and a sense of life's absurd little synchronicities. Read full review
80
Chicago ReaderJ.R. Jones
Irish playwright Mark O'Rowe, who wrote the script, has an admirable sense of dramatic proportion that suits his intertwining stories; theater director John Crowley, making his film debut, has a sure hand with his actors; and an excellent cast enlivens this web of romantic and criminal intrigue, set in a gray suburb of Dublin. R. Read full review
80
The New YorkerAnthony Lane
John Crowley’s film is high on its own briskness, and its glances at Irish backstreet life land it securely in the terrain that was mapped out by Stephen Frears’s “The Snapper” and “The Van.” [5 April 2004, p. 89]
80
Dallas ObserverGregory Weinkauf
Stupid camera shenanigans aside, theater veteran Crowley deftly directs his large, stellar cast, and playwright-cum-screenwriter Mark O'Rowe serves up a wild knot of character arcs pitched somewhere among the neighborhoods of Ken Loach, Mike Leigh and Danny Boyle. Read full review
75
PremiereGlenn Kenny
It’s tempting to summarize this Irish picture as a working-class version of "Love Actually," and indeed, the hardscrabble lives of most of its amorously unfulfilled characters go a long way in making it a whole lot less emetic than Richard Curtis’s hugfest. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy Burr
Could fairly be described as a Robert Altman ensemble movie without the flab, or "Magnolia" with a mean streak and bigger laughs. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneMark Caro
If Intermission isn't profound, it's got boisterous humor and energy, with U2's rollicking "Out of Control" leading the charge. Given the grimness of many Irish tales, Intermission represents less of a pause than a burst into a fresh direction. Read full review
75
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
Intermission is like a creme brulee, invigoratingly grainy when you bite into it but sweet and soft underneath. Director John Crowley and writer Mark O'Rowe infuse this Irish crime drama with such adrenaline that you don't realize how lightweight it is until after it's over. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
Here, love and violence are random, everyone's a fool for love, and tomfoolery often has a shocking twist. And every action has an equal and opposite reaction. Read full review
70
VarietyDerek Elley
Borderline grungy but highly entertaining comedy-drama. Read full review
70
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
The film's uniformly excellent performances are a delight, and fans of Irish actor Farrell (whose pitch-perfect American accent has served him well in Hollywood) can hear both his natural inflections and his singing voice. Read full review
67
Portland OregonianKaren Karbo
A sort of low-down, dirty-faced Irish cousin of "Love Actually," the glossy smarm replaced by a jittery raunchiness. Read full review
63
New York PostLou Lumenick
"Love, Actually" meets "Trainspotting" in Intermission, an edgy Irish romantic comedy that deftly juggles a dozen interconnected story lines. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
Like many stylish, whipcrack American and British indies made in the wake of Quentin Tarantino and "Trainspotting," the film gets off on the same anything-can-happen storytelling brio, which at least keeps things lively. But without any resonant characters or ideas, it's all empty calories. Read full review
50
L.A. WeeklyScott Foundas
Beyond that surface grit, Intermission is still a fairly saccharine collage of self-redemptive gestures and happy endings that, true to its title, only fitfully compels. Read full review
50
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
It's surprising that so much material, so many moods, and such an interesting cast end up making such a small, unmemorable splash. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
A black comedy that some viewers may take as an assault. The disconnect between the realism of its violence and the near-slapstick tone of some of its comedy is too much to be framed within one movie. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Stephen Cole
It's a bright, busy imitation of independent moviemaking. But it's hardly an independent film. Hopefully, next time out, director Crowley, a promising storyteller, will find his own story to tell. Read full review
40
Village VoiceJessica Winter
Like a loud and intermittently charismatic drunk at a dreary dive bar, Intermission grabs your attention, but in no time you're looking for the nearest exit. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleKimberley Jones
In manipulating its many disparate characters to bump into each other and set plot lines in motion, Intermission walks a fine line between clever and contrived, with the scale tipping more often toward contrived. Read full review
30
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
Turns out to be a tedious and under-inspired comedy. Read full review
25
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
Unfortunately, this latest effort is so mean-spirited and nasty that you wish Farrell hadn't bothered. Read full review
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