Serendipity
Miramax Home Entertainment | Release Date: October 5, 2001 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
52
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 33 Critic Reviews
Positive:
14
Mixed:
15
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Serendipity has no business working, but it does. And by the way, Eugene Levy has no business almost stealing the show, but he does, too. Read full review
88
Boston GlobeJay Carr
Serendipity returns us, if only for a couple of hours, to the Manhattan of our dreams.
80
Mr. ShowbizKevin Maynard
The casting is sublime.
80
SalonCharles Taylor
Airy and enchanting, this romantic comedy works overtime to sprinkle moonlight and stardust over itself. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
Serendipity is "Sliding Doors" with no alternate versions; it's willed enchantment all the way.
75
San Francisco ChronicleBob Graham
Serendipity is a throwback to a more innocent era in American life, 25 days ago. Read full review
75
New York PostLou Lumenick
Honestly, it's still pretty hard to resist as a guilty pleasure: A fluffy date-night movie that wrung a tear or two from more than one hardened male critic's eyes, chick flick or no. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
Serendipity's finale is a perfect crowd-pleaser, sweet and unlikely and over the top. Read full review
70
Film ThreatMichael Dequina
Serendipity leaves one with a pleasant feeling few films generate: that of wanting more. Read full review
70
Village VoiceEd Park
The most romantic New York movie since August's "Happy Accidents." Read full review
70
NewsweekDavid Ansen
A fanciful, featherweight, mostly charming concoction predicated on the old romantic myth that there is one true soul mate out there for us all.
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
There is a thrill in seeing them wooing and pursuing each other through the streets of New York, a city that here again, for a while, becomes a movie isle of joy. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJami Bernard
The lightweight bauble is perfect entertainment for now. Read full review
63
USA TodayClaudia Puig
If you can believe Serendipity's cockeyed conceit, you may find that discovering this escapist love story feels like a lucky accident. Read full review
60
TimeRichard Schickel
Your affection for Serendipity may depend on how fascinated you are by a movie that is apparently going after the all-time record for delayed consummation.
58
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
Tasty, but, finally, a little unfulfilling. Read full review
50
New Times (L.A.)Robert Wilonsky
Serendipity already feels archaic, like some dusty relic that's been unearthed from an antique store's attic and polished off for display. Read full review
50
New York Magazine (Vulture)Peter Rainer
I've never understood why filmmakers construct romances in which the leads hardly spend any time together. Read full review
50
The New York TimesA.O. Scott
The cinematic equivalent of a plate made of spun sugar. Read full review
50
Seattle Post-IntelligencerSean Axmaker
It all feels false and calculated, an overearnest attempt to find old-fashioned romantic innocence in the modern world by someone too jaded to believe. Read full review
50
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
The pace is brisk and the details are carefully arranged, but there's no sparkle -- and what's a romance without that? Read full review
50
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
Maybe the best way to see Serendipity is to take a cue from the characters and wait a few years.
50
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
A blithe and unapologetic fairy tale about affairs of the heart, it's a spun-sugar confection that's so light and airy it threatens to simply float away. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleKimberley Jones
It's kinda funny and pretty cute. Sometimes that's all it takes. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
Contrived and schematic, Peter Chelsom's film is a mechanical bird that never takes wing. Read full review
50
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
This exceedingly romantic comedy begins with flair but lapses into clichés long before the sentimental (and predictable) finale. Read full review
40
L.A. WeeklyErnest Hardy
As Serendipity moves into the final stretch, Chelsom's direction becomes frenzied but still lethargic; he never breathes life into the film. Read full review
40
Chicago ReaderLisa Alspector
Romantic comedy is set mainly in NYC, where the plight of its ambivalent lovers seems particularly trivial. Read full review
40
VarietyTodd McCarthy
Will serve as an excellent gauge of any viewer's tolerance level for schmaltzy contrivance and manipulation. Read full review
38
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
The plot risks bursting under the strain of its coincidences, as Sara and Jon fly to opposite coasts at the same time and engage in a series of Idiot Plot moves so extreme and wrongheaded that even other characters in the same scene should start shouting helpful suggestions. Read full review
30
Washington PostRita Kempley
The ultimate in deja viewing:an overfamiliar and exasperating game of cat-and-mousie. Read full review
20
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Insipid, by-the-numbers romance. Read full review
20
Rolling StonePeter Travers
Does romantic comedy have to come off as sugared stupidity? It does here. Read full review
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