Love the Hard Way
Kino International | Release Date: June 6, 2003 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
42
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews
Positive:
4
Mixed:
12
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Not perfect; a vice cop played by Pam Grier is oddly conceived and unlikely in action, and the movie doesn't seem to know how to end. But as character studies of Jack and Claire, it is daring and inventive, and worthy of comparison with the films of a French master of criminal psychology like Jean-Pierre Melville. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderJ.R. Jones
Their relationship is so subtly inflected with fear, envy, and self-loathing on both sides of the class divide that I was drawn in nonetheless. Brody is a compelling presence throughout. Read full review
70
The A.V. ClubNathan Rabin
Brody's Oscar victory and newfound star power might have secured Love The Hard Way its theatrical release, but his depth and charisma are what make the film haunting and surprisingly resonant. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneRobert K. Elder
Writer-director Peter Sehr displays obvious directing talent, especially in his use of nonlinear love scenes. He shows the coupling, the approach and release all at once, out of order, mixing the entire seduction ritual into one fluid montage. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesManohla Dargis
It's too little Grier too late, but it's also fairly satisfying to watch. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Adrien Brody completists will appreciate Love the Hard Way, if only as an example of the kind of self-conscious, brat-noir projects their man probably won't be doing anymore. Read full review
50
New York PostLou Lumenick
Wildly uneven romantic drama. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeTy Burr
The film's final scenes are among its silliest, unfortunately. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
This solid, if familiar, neo-noir premise is nevertheless given a fresh spin by the funky NYC locales, the dubwise hip-hop soundtrack, the terrific chemistry between Brody and the underrated Seda and the one and only Pam Grier. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
Low-budget, oddly cast and strictly indie all the way. Read full review
40
Village VoiceLaura Sinagra
If this adaptation of Chinese punk-lit writer Wang Shuo's fiction doesn't survive its Bronx trick-out, you can't really blame Brody, whose luminous autodidact seems caught between camp and coolsville. Read full review
40
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
None of it is enough, though, to save this glum drama from its schematic self.
40
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
Although Love the Hard Way is saturated with a doomed romanticism that feels more fictitious than real, the actors lend the movie a potency that it would not have had otherwise. Read full review
40
VarietyDerek Elley
Doesn't ring true as a love story between a cocky scam artist and a clever biology student, despite a game effort by Charlotte Ayanna in an impossible role and Adrien Brody at his loosest. Read full review
40
The New York TimesStephen Holden
Loses tension (and ultimately credibility) as it wanders through three possible endings before grinding to a halt. Read full review
40
New York Magazine (Vulture)Peter Rainer
Brody doesn’t deserve this movie. Read full review
38
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
Brody does have a mesmerizing presence and is the only reason to see a film that likely would have gone straight to video if he hadn't won that Oscar for "The Pianist." Read full review
30
L.A. WeeklyHazel-Dawn Dumpert
Long-shelved 2001 clunker. Read full review
25
Rolling StonePeter Travers
To shine in a turd like this shows Brody has the stuff that -- damn the Oscar jinx -- makes an actor last. Read full review
25
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
Brody has offbeat charisma, but it's no match for the corny dialogue he's given here, not to mention the "Wild at Heart" snakeskin jacket he wears. Read full review
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