Natural Selection
Cinema Guild | Release Date: March 16, 2012 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 14 Critic Reviews
Positive:
6
Mixed:
7
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertJun 20, 2012
Linda is a truly good woman, and Rachael Harris' performance illuminates Natural Selection. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleAmy BiancolliApr 26, 2012
The results are often comical, but Pickering who made the film in tribute to his mother, the real Linda White - imbues them with faith in something, maybe dignity, maybe love, maybe just the simple human urge to keep on moving. Read full review
75
Rolling StonePeter TraversMar 15, 2012
Best known as Ed Helms' nagging fiancée in "The Hangover," Harris is just perfect without ever looking down on Linda's faith in God and herself. Her performance earns a special kind of glory. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubAlison WillmoreMar 14, 2012
A generous, unguarded performance from Rachael Harris cuts through the cuteness of a quirky premise in Natural Selection. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesBetsy SharkeyMay 17, 2012
An intriguing and intelligent first effort from indie filmmaker Robbie Pickering, digs deep into the heart of Texas for its soulful tale of small town saints and sinners and a road trip to redemption. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineMichael NordineMar 11, 2012
The film works because what it documents is less a transformation and more a return to a former, more natural state for its troubled protagonist. Read full review
60
Village VoiceMichelle OrangeMar 13, 2012
Natural Selection mixes elements of "Transamerica" and the recent "Higher Ground" to tell the story of how a God-fearing fortysomething woman found the greatest love of all. Read full review
60
VarietyJoe LeydonMar 12, 2012
This filmed-in-Texas road movie finds a smooth groove between self-conscious quirkiness and broadly played farce. Read full review
50
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsJul 13, 2012
Snark is not art. In the evolutionary spectrum of cinema, Natural Selection is like the duck-billed platypus, pretending to be warm-blooded but more than a little fowl. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderBen SachsJun 21, 2012
However gritty this indie comedy may look (cinematographer Steve Calitri seems to be aping William Eggleston's photographs of the American south), it isn't all that different from an Adam Sandler vehicle: writer-director Robbie Pickering spends much of the movie mocking his characters' stupidity, then pulls an about-face with a sentimental conclusion that feels unearned. Read full review
50
The New York TimesStephen HoldenMar 15, 2012
Aside from Ms. Harris's performance, the main reason to recommend Natural Selection - very conditionally - is that its creator clearly has talent. He simply lacked the resources to make the movie he envisioned. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeMar 12, 2012
As cartoonish as much of this is, Pickering's story is refreshing in its refusal to paint all Christians with the same brush, Read full review
40
Time OutDavid FearMar 13, 2012
This writer-director still has some evolving to do. Read full review
25
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyJul 5, 2012
The movie has elements of road picture, social satire, and odd-couple romance, but mostly it's about lack of pacing and tone. Somewhere very (very) deep in here is a whiff of "Citizen Ruth," and who knows what Alexander Payne might have done with this material. Instead we know what writer-director Robbie Pickering has done with it, and that ain't much. Read full review
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