Salvation Boulevard
IFC Films | Release Date: July 15, 2011 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
35
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 15 Critic Reviews
Positive:
0
Mixed:
8
Negative:
7
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
Village VoiceMark HolcombJul 12, 2011
Salvation Boulevard isn't groundbreaking or even consistently funny, but it is mildly inventive and the absurdities of its characters are tender and recognizably human. Best of all, we're encouraged to laugh with them rather than at them. Read full review
50
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsAug 5, 2011
Here, the scattershot spoofery never rings true. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerTirdad DerakhshaniJul 28, 2011
It's not that Salvation Boulevard is bad: It's quite funny at times and has some good performances. But it's so predictable it has no bite, either as social satire or as slapstick comedy. Read full review
50
Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumJul 16, 2011
The comedic slaps are too limp to leave a mark. Director George Ratliff applied a much clearer eye to "Hell House," his chilling 2001 documentary about a real church. Read full review
50
New York PostLou LumenickJul 15, 2011
It's a reasonably funny religious satire that takes potshots at easy targets but is quite watchable due to the participation of two Oscar winners and two Oscar nominees. Read full review
50
The New York TimesA.O. ScottJul 14, 2011
As the plot swerves toward an almost crazy conclusion, there is the inkling of a strong, interesting idea here, about how some versions of modern religion are predicated on the systematic denial of reality, but Salvation Boulevard is itself too loosely tethered to the actual world to make the point with the necessary vigor or acuity. Read full review
40
New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanJul 15, 2011
Loosely adapting Larry Beinhart's darker novel, Ratliff and co-writer Douglas Stone indulge in so many cheap shots and caricatures, their disdain drips off the screen. Read full review
40
Time OutKeith UhlichJul 12, 2011
Mostly laugh-free black comedy, which gathers an impressive cast - Marisa Tomei, Jennifer Connelly and Ciarán Hinds round out the ensemble - for bad sitcom-level shenanigans. Read full review
33
The A.V. ClubNoel MurrayJul 14, 2011
Salvation Boulevard doesn't seem to have any higher aspiration than illustrating how religious people can be hypocrites. (Gosh, who knew?) Read full review
30
NPRIan BuckwalterJul 15, 2011
Without the humor, the stereotypes that define these characters aren't satirical; they're just mean-spirited and dull. Read full review
30
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternJul 14, 2011
The movie transforms a dim idea - "Elmer Gantry" lite - into comedy that's dead in the water and as dull as it is broad. Read full review
30
Boxoffice MagazineRay GreeneJul 10, 2011
In this case, boredom is the deadliest sin. Read full review
30
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeJul 10, 2011
The action that follows is as broad and unconvincing as the characters involved: director George Ratliff manages to turn even dignified Ciaran Hinds into a ham. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoAug 11, 2011
No target is too obvious for Salvation Boulevard, a farrago of cheap shots aimed at Christian fundamentalism. It's a blunderbuss satire that criminally wastes a talented cast. Read full review
25
ObserverRex ReedJul 12, 2011
It's a stupid farrago of aborted ideas, misguided actors, lame direction, submental writing and follow-the-dots plotting that never comes anywhere within a 10-mile radius of what I used to call coherent filmmaking. Read full review
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