Russian Dolls
IFC Films | Release Date: May 10, 2006 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
67
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 24 Critic Reviews
Positive:
18
Mixed:
6
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
New York PostKyle Smith
Russian Dolls is itself a delightful mini-trip to Europe. Its overly cute bits are like cinematic tourist traps, but it's the beauty that stays with you. Read full review
100
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
Russian Dolls captures how being a sexual cad has become an essential phase in the life of the modern male. Read full review
91
Portland OregonianM. E. Russell
A bright, sexy, globe-trotting and very French romantic comedy. Read full review
91
Baltimore SunChris Kaltenbach
Russian Dolls never resorts to sitcom moments as it explores the transformation of friendship into love. All the characters here are believably appealing and refreshingly three-dimensional, and the situations they find themselves in have the ring of truth. You leave this film wanting to know these people, wanting the best for them. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubNoel Murray
These characters are still rich, and their potential growth still compelling. Here's hoping we meet them again in another five years. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
Klapisch's use of split screens, fragmented images and nouvelle vague-ish editing would be annoying if it weren't so in keeping with the youthful exuberance his characters haven't quite lost. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
Russian Dolls isn't quite the gem that its precursor was. It rambles. It's less of an ensemble effort. There's more of Xavier's moping self-centeredness. But Duris is terrific as the confused cusp-of-30 protagonist, and the rest of the cast is bright and beaming. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy Burr
The film isn't especially deep, but it's mostly delightful. Read full review
70
SalonAndrew O'Hehir
As long as Klapisch keeps his characters pinballing each other from one Euro-capital to the next, Russian Dolls remains fun and charming, without ever seeming remotely serious or meaningful. Read full review
70
The New YorkerDavid Denby
Russian Dolls offers touristic views of London, Paris, and St. Petersburg, where Wendy and Xavier both go for the wedding of another former roommate, and many pretty faces and bodies; it's froth with a sprinkling of earnest reflection. Read full review
70
L.A. WeeklyElla Taylor
Precisely observed, charming and - for better and worse - light as air. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesCarina Chocano
Charming and antic, Russian Dolls doesn't quite cohere in the way of "L'Auberge Espagnole" into a clever snapshot of contemporary Europe. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterFrank Scheck
Another highly entertaining portrait of attractive young Europeans looking for personal and professional fulfillment amidst gorgeous locations. Read full review
70
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Fluffily enjoyable. Read full review
70
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
Klapisch self-consciously throws fistfuls of quirky film style at us, as if he were Francois Truffaut, but his characters are still interesting and his party sequences are especially good. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
Meandering, overlong digital soap opera. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
Russian Dolls, like "L'Auberge," has an excellent cast (mostly the same one, in fact) and an impish style and speed that gives it more obvious audience appeal than the average French film. Read full review
63
Miami HeraldMarta Barber
The cast of renegades is as appealing as ever, and you'd only wish that the fictional folks of "Friends" or the cast of "Real World" were so free and nonjudgmental. Read full review
60
EmpireDavid Parkinson
For all its self-conscious pizzazz, this is irresistibly entertaining. Read full review
60
Village VoiceBill Gallo
Those who loved the original Auberge will likely be eager to book rooms once again. Read full review
58
Seattle Post-IntelligencerSean Axmaker
For all its pronouncements, it's a frothy romantic lark. Read full review
50
VarietyLisa Nesselson
Viewers who thought the protags were superficial and annoying first time around will find little to change their minds here, but original pictures fans will probably embrace the now-scattered group's marginally more mature dilemmas centered on work and romance. Read full review
50
The New York TimesStephen Holden
The shallowness of this idealized depiction of European cultural homogeneity is largely camouflaged by the comfortable fit of its director's sensibility with the actors' likable, lived-in performances. An apt alternative title for Russian Dolls might be "Lovers Without Borders." Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalle
The smarter way to make this movie would have been to edit out everything extraneous to the story of Xavier and Wendy. They're the soul and heart of the movie, while everything else is pretty much dead weight. Read full review
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