Lamb
Orchard, The | Release Date: January 8, 2016 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
62
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 12 Critic Reviews
Positive:
8
Mixed:
3
Negative:
1
Watch Now
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
VarietyJustin ChangDec 4, 2015
Partridge navigates risky material with assurance, delicacy and a deepening sense of intimacy that can turn, without warning, into complicity: The more at ease we feel in the characters’ company, the more disturbingly questionable the situation becomes. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerTirdad DerakhshaniJan 23, 2016
Partridge portrays David with immaculate timing and meticulous attention to detail. We feel for the character's pain, but never quite trust him. Read full review
75
Charlotte ObserverLawrence ToppmanJan 15, 2016
The movie holds no clear answers. Every time you think you know where it’s going, it veers. And at the end, I’m pretty sure even Tommie and Lamb – who alternately thinks he’s enriching her life or ruining it – don’t quite know what they’ve been through. But the journey seems to have been worthwhile for them and us. Read full review
75
The PlaylistKimber MyersJan 7, 2016
What’s interesting about Lamb is that it doesn’t stand in judgment of its protagonist; it neither condemns him for what are undeniably bad and illegal choices, nor does it celebrate them either. Though not always successful, this is a complicated film that should cause its audience to continue to think about its characters and the actions they take. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubNoel MurrayJan 6, 2016
Throughout Lamb, Laurence makes sure that every one of the character’s bad choices makes sense. That’s what makes the movie so sad. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleJan 7, 2016
The compulsively watchable oddness of Lamb and its commingling of innocence and peril keep it from easy categorization. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckDec 4, 2015
Lamb proves itself a deeply intriguing psychological drama that should inspire much spirited debate. Let the controversy begin. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comMatt Zoller SeitzJan 8, 2016
Lamb is empathetic and untrustworthy, haunting but often unpersuasive. In the end it's hard to say what the film's point is. But it lingers in the mind. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattJan 6, 2016
Based on a lauded 2011 novel of the same name, Lamb is about as strange as it sounds: a Lolita story almost more unsettling for the lines it doesn’t explicitly cross. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleDavid LewisJan 14, 2016
This film doesn’t know exactly what it wants to say. Read full review
50
The New York TimesManohla DargisJan 7, 2016
Mr. Partridge never figures out how to complicate his version and its voices, or maybe doesn’t want to. He softens Lamb and Tommie with tears, safe hugs and averted looks and, once they land in the countryside, mires them in sentimentality. Read full review
38
Slant MagazineClayton DillardJan 5, 2016
Ross Partridge seems flatly fascinated by Lamb’s pathology without trying to understand its formation from environmental factors. Read full review
More From This Movie

62 Critic Reviews

6.2 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