Man of the Year
Universal Pictures | Release Date: October 13, 2006 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
39
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 30 Critic Reviews
Positive:
4
Mixed:
17
Negative:
9
Watch Now
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
38
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
Writer-director Barry Levinson leaned on Robin Williams the way a one-ring circus relies on its lone acrobat. So they're jointly responsible for the film's utter failure. Read full review
38
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
Levinson has written and directed in many genres. But rarely has he made a film as indecisive and diffident as Man of the Year. Read full review
33
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
If there's anything sadder than a satire without teeth, it's a thriller without thrills. Even sadder is the rare movie that fails at both genres simultaneously. That, and that alone, makes Man Of The Year exceptional. Read full review
30
Village VoiceRobert Wilonsky
Levinson loses his movie, his audience, and his purpose in a tangle of conspiracy theories and crackpot notions that sink the movie just when it begins to transcend expectations. In short, it would have been great if it had stopped, oh, 12 minutes in. Read full review
30
L.A. WeeklyScott Foundas
No doubt, Levinson thought he was making this generation's "Dr. Strangelove." What he's actually made is a desperate, ponderous sop to progressives that caters to all of the left's worst fears about voter fraud, corporate malfeasance and the impossibility of effecting real change. Read full review
30
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
Mainly it's a shambles, though for once Williams gets to do what he's best at (his stand-up shtick), and the absurd story, no matter how carelessly assembled, keeps moving. Read full review
30
SalonStephanie Zacharek
It's a comedy, a political thriller, a love story: Barry Levinson's Man of the Year tries to be all things to all people and fails on every count -- a little like the generic, ineffectual politicians it's pretending to excoriate. Read full review
25
New York PostKyle Smith
Halfway through, the jokes stop - the laughs never began - and give way to a tiresome thriller. Read full review
25
PremiereEthan Alter
The film is laughable when it tries to be dramatic and stone-faced when it strains to be funny. Beyond that, Man of the Year is often so wildly off the mark in its depiction of how elections are run, it's hard to believe that it was directed by the same guy who helmed "Wag the Dog," one of the savviest political films ever made. Read full review
More From This Movie

39 Critic Reviews

5.2 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 77 Project Hail Mary
2 75 Send Help
3 73 Hoppers
4 72 The Sheep Detectives
5 68 Crime 101
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL