Observe and Report
Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: April 10, 2009 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
54
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 35 Critic Reviews
Positive:
19
Mixed:
10
Negative:
6
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
The superb character actor Celia Weston (In the Bedroom) is truly breathtaking as Ronnie's boozer mom. Read full review
90
New York Magazine (Vulture)David Edelstein
Observe and Report is the rare "action-comedy" (almost always a muddled hybrid) that earns its cathartic climax. The blood is real because the psychosis is real. But somehow--the magic of comedy--it's also uproarious. Read full review
88
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
You can't root for Ronnie. You can't identify with him. You can't hope he gets the girl – any girl. But you may want to look on with stunned fascination as he ticks away, ready to explode. Read full review
80
Film ThreatScott Mendelson
In a genuinely brave performance, Seth Rogen sheds his frat-boy comic styling and delivers an unflinching portrayal. Read full review
75
Rolling StonePeter Travers
Funny as hell. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
As funny as it is sick (and it's plenty of both). Read full review
75
Portland OregonianM. E. Russell
This is one of those comedies where the humor lies in the audacity of tone and character rather than any particular sight gag or one-liner. Same with "The Foot Fist Way," which is absolutely worth your rental dollar. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineCammila Albertson
Some movies strive to give you that warm, fuzzy feeling, and some strive to make you bawl your eyes out, but Observe and Report strives to make you feel ambivalent, confused, and a little bit dirty, and whether or not you find that enjoyable, it's not something you likely feel very often. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
Funnier than the silliest comedy because it's surprisingly real. Read full review
75
New York PostLou Lumenick
Admirable for venturing into very dark places rarely glimpsed in big-studio comedies. Read full review
75
PremiereRob Calvert
The random and unpredictable nature makes it an extremely interesting film to watch. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
It falls short of brilliant but it's a lot more daring than what passes for "dark comedy" these days, and it reminds us that "feel bad" comedies may not always be as funny as "feel good" ones but, when they work, they can ultimately be more satisfying. Read full review
70
VarietyJoe Leydon
Ronnie is more complex, and much scarier, than the kind of self-deluding boob auds usually encounter in comedies of this sort. With the invaluable aid of Rogen, who's never been better, Hill sustains an impressive degree of tension between seemingly contradictory elements. Read full review
70
New York Daily NewsJoe Neumaier
While it stops before sliding too far into the darkness,Observe and Report hits a lot of bull's-eyes by aiming for the gut, not easy belly laugh. Read full review
70
TimeRichard Corliss
A feel-good ending is mandatory, even in a comedy like this, which promises to be transgressive because it's the first major-studio job for a director with an underground reputation for being crazy-bold. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
Something of a cross between the formalist whimsy of Wes Anderson and the God's-lonely-man psychosis of "Taxi Driver," the film breaks all the rules, but the tonal schizophrenia that results isn't an accident. Read full review
67
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
The movie, starring Rogen as a mall cop with anger management issues, is essentially a goony romp flecked with disturbing eruptions of violence. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
This new movie is crazier, scarier, funnier, and more bewildering. It's the strangest movie I expect to see from a Hollywood studio for the rest of the year. Read full review
63
USA TodayClaudia Puig
Where "Mall Cop" is broad, safe and sticks to a formula, Observe and Report is unabashedly crude, cynical, off-kilter and funnier. Read full review
60
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
Broad but thin and more bleak than uproarious--a humorously downsized homage to foundational '70s classics like "Dirty Harry" and, especially, "Taxi Driver." Read full review
60
EmpireDan Jolin
An odd one. Rogen's latest clown is an angry, confused man who you never feel entirely comfortable laughing at. There are laughs -- you'll just feel guilty afterwards... Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeFore
Barring a Terry Zwigoff return to "Bad Santa" territory, it's hard to imagine a filmmaker embracing this dubious hero to the extent writer-director Jody Hill does. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael Phillips
There's about 10 good minutes out of 85. Read full review
50
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
Observe and Report conveys an essential truth about Rogen: Like every other actor on the planet, he needs good material to do good work. Read full review
50
Wall Street JournalJoanne Kaufman
Bobs and weaves between gross-out comedy and violent psychosexual drama, ultimately sliding into parody. Read full review
50
SlateDana Stevens
What's meant (I think) to be a "f*** you" to action-movie conventions reads instead as a "f*** you" to the audience. Observe and Report tickets should come with a free breath mint, because however hard you've been laughing, that ending leaves a seriously bad taste in your mouth. Read full review
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam Lacey
One of those comedies that is more peculiar than actually funny. Read full review
50
Washington PostJohn Anderson
Cruel, unfunny and yet somehow perversely fascinating. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleMarjorie Baumgarten
Midway through, a character remarks as he leaves the scene of a takedown of Ronnie, "I thought this was going to be funny, but it's just kind of sad." The same thing is true about the movie as a whole. Read full review
30
Dallas ObserverRobert Wilonsky
Yes, the "Taxi Driver" parallels are intentional: Hill spells them out in the press notes, all but branding Observe and Report a Scorsesefied remake that reeks of stale Cinnabon. Read full review
30
Chicago ReaderJ.R. Jones
I've observed this Seth Rogen comedy, and I can report that it's not very good. Read full review
25
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
This film isn't the most awful comedy of the year (that would be Bride Wars or New in Town), but it may have the grossest antihero. Read full review
10
Los Angeles TimesBetsy Sharkey
It heaps piles of bad, crazy stuff at our feet then walks away. There is no moral to this story, and there's not much comedy either. Read full review
10
SalonStephanie Zacharek
It's possible Hill has a style, of sorts. But he doesn't work from the heart, or from the gut, as a good comedy director generally needs to. He operates from one guiding question: "How disturbing can we make this sh**?" Read full review
10
The New York TimesManohla Dargis
If you thought Abu Ghraib was a laugh riot then you might love Observe and Report, a potentially brilliant conceptual comedy that fizzles because its writer and director, Jody Hill, doesn't have the guts to go with his spleen. Read full review
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