Introducing the Dwights
Warner Independent Pictures (WIP) | Release Date: July 4, 2007 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
50
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 23 Critic Reviews
Positive:
10
Mixed:
9
Negative:
4
Watch Now
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
San Francisco ChronicleRuthe Stein
Among the many strengths of the sweetly touching Introducing the Dwights, a small gem from Australia unearthed at the Sundance Film Festival, is that Jean never becomes Godzilla. Read full review
83
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
Funny and appalling, doting and possessive, petty and selfless, raunchy and righteous, Jeannie is the pivot of the charming, garish, somewhat overwritten Australian comedy Introducing the Dwights. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerSean Axmaker
Director Cherie Nowlan creates vivid personalities for the entire family and exposes the raw nerves of the biting humor. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
It does what all good coming of age movies do, and that makes it a worthy and welcome entry into the genre. Read full review
70
VarietyDennis Harvey
Warm and entertaining enough, with Brenda Blethyn doing a variation on her "Little Voice" vulgarian amid appealing support perfs. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesCarina Chocano
The movie belongs to Blethyn, who takes a difficult, easily misunderstood role and gracefully cracks it open to reveal what's inside. Read full review
67
Baltimore SunChris Kaltenbach
Blethyn's performance belongs in another movie, not this bipolar comedy-drama. Read full review
63
New York PostKyle Smith
No matter how good Blethyn is at playing up the sweet hurt of a woman who is well on the decline but never made it in the first place, your admiration for her shrieking-and-drinking breakdown scenes is likely to be tested after about the fifth go-round. Read full review
63
USA TodayClaudia Puig
For those seeking an alternative to giant robots and flying wizards, there's an amusing Australian comedy that might be just the right panacea for blockbuster overload. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldPeter Debruge
The dynamic between mother and son is fascinating, with Blethyn creating a character who is more antagonist than villain. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
The film suffers for her (Brenda Blethyn) egocentrism. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
If you find a movie with a more annoying central performance than the one given by Brenda Blethyn in Cherie Nowlan's Introducing the Dwights, keep it to yourself. Read full review
50
The New York TimesA.O. Scott
A funny-sad, icky-sweet comedy of family dysfunction. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneSid Smith
The movie successfully balances the sentimental and bittersweet only about half the time. The performances are intelligent and well-crafted, and Blethyn is unmistakably a star performer, attracting attention like a vortex. But she's somewhat miscast here. Read full review
50
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Amusing only for its performances, including those of Chittenden and Wilson. The cast cannot hide the movie's derivative shortcomings, which only remind us that we've seen better and funnier elsewhere. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderAndrea Gronvall
Director Cherie Nowlan steers the comedy to a feel-good ending. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam Lacey
The script's attempt to splice together a fumbling love story with a portrait of toxic personality disorder feels incongruous, like a serving of porridge flambé au whisky. Read full review
50
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Sometimes Brenda Blethyn is content merely to nibble the scenery. In Introducing the Dwights, a drippy Australian family comedy caper, she chomps it to a pulp until we long for her straightforward monstrosity as a mother in "Little Voice." Read full review
40
Wall Street JournalJoanne Kaufman
Jean's material is so flat-out awful it's amazing she gets hired at all, let alone that she once supposedly had headliner potential. It's a discrepancy that Introducing the Dwights never addresses. Read full review
38
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
Nothing about this movie works, not the title (it used to be called "Clubland "), not Blethyn's attempt to inject comedy into her rickety stereotype of a character. Read full review
38
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
Quirkiness is as essential to a small indie film as beef stock to French onion soup. But if you don't have enough of any other ingredient, you end up with a watery, barely edible broth. Read full review
30
Village VoiceAaron Hillis
With its broad, toothless humor and ham-fisted fits of melodrama, this sitcom-grade embarrassment aims to dethrone "Muriel's Wedding" as the quirky Aussie feel-gooder of all time, except it hurts too much to watch. Read full review
30
Austin ChronicleJosh Rosenblatt
As Tim – a character rich in contradictions and psychological possibilities – Chittenden may as well be a cardboard cutout for all the emotional complexity he’s able to muster. Read full review
More From This Movie

50 Critic Reviews

tbd User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 72 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL