Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing & Charm School
Samuel Goldwyn Films | Release Date: March 31, 2006 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
40
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews
Positive:
3
Mixed:
12
Negative:
5
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
70
Washington PostSarah Kaufman
This film does other power-of-dance movies one better by downplaying the dancing and underscoring what its brethren often lack: a compelling, wrenching and wonderfully inspiring story. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubTasha Robinson
As absorbingly weird and dark and sad as the film becomes, it still labors against jumpy construction, an irritating variety of visual styles and film stocks, and a crowded story that no one gets much individual screen time, which means that redemption for everyone comes far too quickly and neatly. Read full review
63
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
Expanded by writer-director Randall Miller from a nostalgic half-hour short he made while a student at AFI, this well-intentioned film about loss, grief and new beginnings gets bogged down in syrupy cliches and blunt self-help dialogue. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterJames Greenberg
The film is an elegiac journey to a sweeter, more civilized place in the heart. Predictable and decidedly old-fashioned in its sensibility, the film is likely to win over audiences if not critics. Read full review
50
New York PostLou Lumenick
Overall it's got two left feet - and charm is in dangerously short supply. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
The movie delivers the promised ballroom action, but not the charm. And if you think the title is endless, wait till you see Goodman's death scene. Read full review
50
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
Really, about all that unifies the movie is its inclination to turn little people's dreams into limply ''affectionate'' camp. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneSid Smith
Too cute, too transparent, too precious and ultimately too much. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The adults at the Hotchkiss reunion are played by an assortment of splendid actors. Read full review
50
USA TodayClaudia Puig
The story is corny and predictable, but Carlyle's subtle, nuanced performance saves the movie from drowning in sentimentality. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
I wish I could say there is something pleasurable in watching John Goodman reminisce about the good old days while impaled on a steering wheel in the Volvo he's crashed on a California freeway, but I can't find what it is. Read full review
42
Seattle Post-IntelligencerBill White
Three movies gasp for life inside the clumsily titled Marilyn Hotchkiss' Ballroom Dancing & Charm School. Read full review
40
The New York TimesJeannette Catsoulis
Despite a gloriously baroque performance from Mr. Wahlberg - attempting moves certified only for Antonio Banderas - Marilyn Hotchkiss Ballroom Dancing and Charm School remains irredeemably soggy. Read full review
40
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
This has its moments, but most of these are engulfed by the overall murk. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleToddy Burton
Several steps shy of a satisfying lesson. Read full review
38
Miami HeraldPeter Debruge
Amounts to Chicken Soup for the Soul-style torture -- unless you like that kind of thing. Read full review
30
Village VoiceRob Nelson
This flat-footed male weepie musters an insurance ad's worth of clichés about the importance of busting a move in middle age-and it strains so hard to do so that it's almost perversely compelling. Read full review
30
L.A. WeeklyRobert Abele
It's all a treacly, shoddily assembled, underwritten mess. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
An attempt at a beautiful film about renewal -- about past love, love lost, longing and rediscovery -- but it has no emotional truth. Read full review
20
VarietyDennis Harvey
Juggles three separate time periods -- and is completely formulaic in each one. Read full review
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