Play the Game
Slowhand Cinema Releasing | Release Date: August 28, 2009 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
35
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 12 Critic Reviews
Positive:
1
Mixed:
7
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
63
New York PostLou Lumenick
While Fienberg's direction is no great shakes, the film showcases its veteran cast. Read full review
50
VarietyDennis Harvey
The comedy's broad perfs, predictable story beats and pro but characterless packaging have a smallscreen feel. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The screenplay, written by first-time director Marc Fienberg, fervently stays true to an ancient sitcom tradition. Read full review
50
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe Williams
Ultimately it's sunk by the hole in the middle: Paul Campbell (presidential aide Billy on "Battlestar Galactica") who substitutes smarm for charm as the archetypal player who gets played. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
Alas, the conceit of a double-dating Grandson and Gramps does not produce a great many laughs in this cringeworthy film. Read full review
40
Village VoiceAaron Hillis
This Lifetime-ready comedy is hardly provocative--let alone perceptive, funny, or fresh Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterFrank Scheck
Undeniably offers cheap laughs, its most receptive audiences will likely be found in retirement-community auditoriums. Read full review
40
New York Daily NewsElizabeth Weitzman
If you love Viagra jokes, look no further. Otherwise, stay home and find yourself a "Golden Girls" marathon. Read full review
38
Boston GlobeJanice Page
Fienberg’s film spends most of its time trying to convince us that true love starts when you stop playing games. Then, in the final minutes, it reverses itself and puts gamesmanship back up on another wobbly pedestal. The result is hard to cheer. Read full review
30
Washington PostJohn Anderson
A sex romp starring Andy Griffith? Holy AARP! The good news is that the seemingly perennial TV fixture is still funny and sharp and folksy. The bad news is that he lost the bet, or whatever it was that got him into Marc Fienberg's smarmy, lackluster comedy. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChroniclePeter Hartlaub
Has all kinds of good intentions, but the comedy is too broad and the pacing is clumsy. And then there's the Andy Griffith sex scene. Read full review
0
Chicago ReaderJ.R. Jones
This comedy is a bilge pump of tacky jokes, fake sentiment, and hollow performances, accompanied on the soundtrack by lite rock and hokey music cues. It should never have been made, though it's probably guaranteed a long life at bad-film festivals. Read full review
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