Only the Young
Oscilloscope Pictures | Release Date: December 7, 2012 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
71
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 9 Critic Reviews
Positive:
6
Mixed:
3
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
89
Austin ChronicleKimberley JonesFeb 20, 2013
And yet that is what is so very remarkable about the film: In a slim 72 minutes, it heart-tethers us to these teenagers, paying tribute to their unique and private selves while allowing the audience to see its own reflection in them. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubMike D AngeloDec 5, 2012
Not much of real significance happens, which makes Only The Young feel a bit slight, even at a mere 70 minutes. At the same time, though, every hint of direct conflict threatens to break the spell, in part because the film's secret subject is adolescent self-consciousness. Read full review
75
New York PostFarran Smith NehmeDec 14, 2012
The film thwarts any pat expectations you might glean from the town's bad economy and these checkered backgrounds. The teenagers are refreshingly gentle and clean-living; they don't drink, they don't swear and they certainly aren't having sex. All three are religious, a fact that is neither emphasized nor underplayed. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineAndrew SchenkerDec 3, 2012
Jason Tippet and Elizabeth Mims refuse to use their subjects as test cases for any sort of larger thesis. Read full review
70
The New York TimesManohla DargisDec 6, 2012
If Mr. Tippet and Ms. Mims weren't such accomplished visual stylists, you might even think that the teenagers shot the documentary themselves, which explains both its appeal and its limitations. Read full review
70
Village VoiceSarah FischDec 4, 2012
Only the Young captures the lyricism of late childhood and the bewilderment of the road ahead. As for the skate footage, it's shot for pure glory and for all the world, like Wild China or Blue Planet, beautiful beings struggling in exotic habitats: abandoned houses, red-gold bluffs, and run-down mini-golf courses. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinJan 3, 2013
Only the Young rarely coalesces into anything more meaningful than a casual collection of moments. Maybe that's the point. Read full review
60
Time OutSam AdamsDec 4, 2012
At times, the film's lyrical drift shades into incoherence, spackled with globs of free-floating voiceover and Larry Clark-like indolent moments. It's both lovely and frustrating, at least until hard times lay bare the gulf between Skye's fractured family and the boys' more stable lives. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleDavid LewisJan 10, 2013
A charming, aimless film about the aimless. It plays like a nuanced MTV reality show (an oxymoron, perhaps, but you get the idea). Read full review
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