Lila & Eve
Samuel Goldwyn Films | Release Date: July 17, 2015 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
45
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 16 Critic Reviews
Positive:
3
Mixed:
10
Negative:
3
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
70
TheWrapInkoo KangJul 18, 2015
A lovingly crafted B-level melodrama elevated by its remarkable central performance, Lila and Eve feels like Viola Davis’ “Still Alice.” Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesMichael RechtshaffenJul 16, 2015
Lila & Eve is a standard-issue female vigilante thriller that's skillfully elevated by the performances of leads Viola Davis and Jennifer Lopez. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineClayton DillardJul 13, 2015
Charles Stone III's film ultimately succeeds as a convincing social plea, but fails as compelling cinema. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsKatherine PushkarJul 16, 2015
You can get a little lost following the chain of drug dealers who Lila and Eve gun down. Then again, narrative coherence isn’t really the point. What is vital is Davis’ wrenching performance as a mother who’s done everything right, but remains powerless to keep her children safe. Read full review
60
Village VoiceAlan ScherstuhlJul 14, 2015
The movie, directed by Charles Stone III — who gave us 2002's likable Drumline — runs hot and cold, suspenseful and well observed, well acted and often affecting, but somewhat tiresome and implausible by the end. Read full review
58
Portland OregonianMarc MohanJul 17, 2015
Oscar-winner Davis can maintain her dignity in just about anything, and she almost gives Lila enough depth to be a compelling character. Lopez gets points for trying something a bit more challenging than the hot-for-teacher dreck of "The Boy Next Door," but she inevitably struggles to hit more than one note. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerMolly EichelJul 17, 2015
A mid-point twist is particularly ridiculous, and in an attempt to reconcile this turning point, the final act of the movie becomes a mess. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperJul 16, 2015
Davis (who was an executive producer on the film) gives a strong performance, as if she were acting in one of those many prestige projects lighting up her resume. It’s a noble try, but this dreck is beyond saving. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubIgnatiy VishnevetskyJul 16, 2015
Pitched somewhere between indie domestic drama and direct-to-video exploitation, Lila & Eve is the kind of film in which a sturdy, unsensational piece of acting can take the spotlight. Read full review
50
VarietyPeter DebrugeJul 14, 2015
Although Davis’ performance is so good here, it’s tough to know where the real world ends and the vendetta fantasy begins. Read full review
40
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriJul 20, 2015
Lila & Eve is an awkward movie, though sometimes by design. Read full review
40
The New York TimesStephen HoldenJul 16, 2015
The main, and perhaps the only, reason to see the revenge thriller Lila and Eve, a shallow, cut-rate “Thelma and Louise,” is for the thunderous lead performance of Viola Davis. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinJul 14, 2015
It’s an instant camp classic, especially because it takes itself so adorably seriously. Read full review
37
Washington PostStephanie MerryJul 16, 2015
In the end, Davis ends up a wasted resource. She does her best to elevate the material, but the story fails to live up to her considerable talents. Read full review
25
RogerEbert.comPeter SobczynskiJul 17, 2015
While Lila & Eve is not supposed to be funny — indeed, the central topic is about as unfunny as one could possibly imagine — but nevertheless inspires huge laughs, albeit of the unintentional kind, thanks an idiotic screenplay and a supposedly "shocking" plot twist that even the most inattentive viewers should be able to figure out within the first fifteen minutes or so, tops. Read full review
25
New York PostKyle SmithJul 15, 2015
Viola Davis lets her Charles Bronson flag fly in Lila and Eve, a ludicrous revenge thriller that should have been called, “Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot.” Read full review
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