Scenic Route
Anderson Digital | Release Date: August 23, 2013 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
34
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 10 Critic Reviews
Positive:
1
Mixed:
5
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
75
USA TodayScott BowlesAug 22, 2013
It's no "Taxi Driver" or even "Open Water," but Route has enough attractions to warrant the trip. Read full review
60
Village VoiceRob StaegerAug 20, 2013
Kevin and Michael Goetz's direction emphasizes the remoteness of the setting. The howl of the desert wind and the unflagging hammer of the sun are the backdrop for every bad decision, lending them a plausibility they wouldn't have in comfort. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeJul 29, 2013
The movie becomes a survival tale and is more successful in its grueling, slightly crazed second half. The Goetzes do a better job capturing the terrain's physical extremes and the challenge of endurance than they do depicting a relationship. Read full review
50
The PlaylistGabe ToroAug 22, 2013
For Scenic Route, it doesn’t seem to be the journey as much as the destination: seeing two sorta-friends wailing on each other feels like the shortcut a better movie never made. Read full review
50
The DissolveMike D'AngeloJul 29, 2013
Duhamel and Fogler play off each other nicely in the early going... The arguments and contrasting worldviews are banal, but the relationship feels genuine. Read full review
40
New York Daily NewsJordan HoffmanAug 22, 2013
The first half of Scenic Route is basically a filmed play, and not an insightful one. The more surreal second half takes on a moodier edge, but the switcheroo ending is cutesy to the point of annoying. Fogler impresses with some brooding edge, but neither he nor the location photography is enough to recommend you join him on this doomed trip. Read full review
30
Los Angeles TimesInkoo KangAug 21, 2013
While the narrative spins in place, Kyle Killen's script throws out one uninspired gambit after another to extend the film to feature length, eventually climaxing with dual endings, both contrived. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleG. Allen JohnsonAug 22, 2013
Sometimes indie pictures like this, with over-the-top acting and outrageous situations, are meant as a calling card for its creators - a chance to show their wares to others in the industry. So calling all producers, there is one tour-de-force performance in Scenic Route: the makeup team of Brian Kinney, Sara Robey and Maia Wagle. Admire their work, and bring earplugs. Read full review
20
The New York TimesStephen HoldenAug 22, 2013
An awkward, long-winded mash-up of therapy session, horror movie and survival tale with pretensions of psychological depth. Read full review
16
The A.V. ClubScott MacDonaldAug 21, 2013
Digital projection has made it easier than ever to get no-budget movies onto theater screens. That might sound wonderfully egalitarian, but it mostly just leads to more shoulda-gone-straight-to-DVD clunkers like Scenic Route. Read full review
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