Queenpins
Elevation Pictures | Release Date: September 10, 2021 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
45
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews
Positive:
5
Mixed:
10
Negative:
5
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
Wall Street JournalJohn AndersonSep 30, 2021
The real-life Arizona case was likely a lot less funny than Queenpins, which was adapted by the film’s directors and uses the comedic gifts of its lead actresses (reunited from both “Veronica Mars” and “The Good Place”) to remain both outrageous and entertaining without ever abandoning an undercurrent of sadness. Read full review
70
VarietyAmy NicholsonSep 8, 2021
Gaudet and Pullapilly argue, cheekily and convincingly, that the real crooks are the unseen conglomerates who’ve created a society that devalues products and their consumers. Read full review
67
The PlaylistLauren J. CoatesSep 8, 2021
While it’s hardly the funniest film of the year, the based-on-a-true-story couponing antics and thoughtful look at motherhood and grief make Queenpins worth the watch. Read full review
63
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperSep 10, 2021
Perhaps this story would be better told in a limited non-fiction series as well, as Queenpins relies too much on scatological humor, farcical sequences and a not entirely convincing message that these women were feminist, Robin Hood heroes. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comNell MinowSep 10, 2021
Watching Queenpins is like eating grocery store birthday cake. It is very pleasurable in the moment but likely to leave you feeling empty and a little queasy. Read full review
60
IGNTara BennettSep 10, 2021
Queenpins works best when Kristen Bell and Kirby Howell-Baptiste are allowed to let their effortless chemistry be the focus. Their comedic instincts are pitch perfect as their naïve pursuit of trying to get ahead financially snowballs into a multi-national coupon-stealing scheme that they are entirely unprepared to navigate. But the fun fizzles with depressing side stories, and especially when Vince Vaughn and Paul Walter Hauser commandeer too much screen time with middling results. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleStaff (Not Credited)Sep 13, 2021
Save glancing asides (guns sure are easy to buy, the courts sure treat Black and white people differently), Gaudet and Pullapilly skip the social satire to focus on a more personality-driven story. Alas, the personality at the center is so very flat. Read full review
50
New York Magazine (Vulture)Jen ChaneySep 10, 2021
This film ultimately doesn’t reach its full potential in part because it can’t settle firmly enough on a vibe or viewpoint. It ping-pongs between buoyant caper, farce, and female empowerment drama without ever lingering long enough in a single zone to make an impact. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsSep 9, 2021
As a sort-of-true-crime comedy, spinning a yarn of middle-class larceny and extreme, deeply unlawful couponing, it’s likely to offend no one but the most grimly law-abiding consumers among us. But like the people it’s about, you want more. Read full review
50
The Associated PressJocelyn NoveckSep 9, 2021
Writer-directors Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly offer up a commentary on the value of work. There’s a critique of capitalism, and an intriguing buddy relationship between two women with very different lives but shared goals. Read full review
50
Movie NationRoger MooreSep 8, 2021
The first act of “Queenpins” makes you giddy at the comic possibilities, but the finale is the final straw in the letdown it too-quickly becomes. Read full review
50
SlashfilmJosh SpiegelSep 8, 2021
Queenpins boasts a cast of talented ringers, who elevate the muddled material far more than it deserves, without actually resulting in an all-around good movie. Read full review
50
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzSep 8, 2021
Writers and directors Aron Gaudet and Gita Pullapilly can’t seem to decided whether to make an offbeat comedy about two under-appreciated women turning to crime or a mismatched buddy cop comedy. So they made both. It’s not a seamless fit. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterAngie HanSep 8, 2021
The crime comedy ends not as a fat stack of jokes but a jumble of loose change — not entirely worthless, but not amounting to a whole lot, either. Read full review
40
Screen RantSarah Bea MilnerSep 8, 2021
It wants to celebrate the American Dream and the entrepreneurial spirit — while making a statement about consumerism and corporate greed. In the end, Queenpins doesn't really say anything, which would have been fine if it was at least funny. Read full review
38
Slant MagazineWes GreeneSep 8, 2021
The film’s largely painful humor is informed by the mistaken belief that the main characters’ criminal enterprise is inherently quirky. Read full review
30
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisSep 9, 2021
Queenpins might have been a snappy little comedy had it lost 20 minutes and found a point beyond glorifying grand larceny. Erasing the lead character’s smug-perky narration wouldn’t have hurt, either. Read full review
30
Los Angeles TimesKatie WalshSep 9, 2021
Queenpins does nothing other than waste your time with bad wigs and poop jokes, and that is the biggest crime of all. Read full review
25
The Seattle TimesKristen Page-KirbySep 10, 2021
It’s frustrating, because a couponing crime lord (crime lady?) being pursued by an obsessed grocery store employee is a story that has so much potential, but the lazy storytelling and on-the-nose direction suck all of the laughs that could come out of the situation. Read full review
25
Washington PostKristen Page-KirbySep 8, 2021
A good story lurks somewhere in Queenpins, but Gaudet and Pullapilly take the easy way out at every plot point and with nearly every joke. Read full review
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