Sharper
Apple TV+ | Release Date: February 10, 2023 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
65
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 35 Critic Reviews
Positive:
22
Mixed:
12
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
We Got This CoveredMartin CarrFeb 8, 2023
Piled high with plot twists and packed full of peerless performances, Sharper brings together Sebastian Stan, Julianne Moore, and John Lithgow in a brooding long con thriller from Apple. Delivering something fresh from the streaming service, which continues to champion originality without limits. Read full review
88
ObserverRex ReedFeb 10, 2023
One of the classiest intellectual thrillers in ages. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubAndy KleinFeb 10, 2023
The film operates like a clockwork mechanism. If there were foul-ups or major implausibilities—as such trick plots often have—they eluded me. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattFeb 10, 2023
It's easy to lose count of the double and triple crosses in Sharper, a silly and unabashedly camp thriller that is, frankly, exactly the kind of sleek, shenanigan-y frolic that bleak midwinter calls for. Read full review
83
ConsequenceMary SirokyFeb 7, 2023
Sharper is an incredibly entertaining entry into the canon of Apple Originals. While it might not have the threshold of darkness or intensity that classify it exactly as a neo-noir, this film is a thoroughly enjoyable mystery. While these characters here might be lying and cheating their way to victory, Sharper comes out on top on its own merits. Read full review
80
The Observer (UK)Wendy IdeFeb 18, 2023
The performances, so thickly layered with charm and artifice that it’s hard to know what and who is real and what isn’t, are first-rate. It’s a pacy and enjoyable movie. Read full review
80
Vanity FairRichard LawsonFeb 7, 2023
Sharper is sinewy and clever, a keenly acted and written B-picture of the sort that were once myriad but now only come around once every few years. Read full review
80
The TelegraphTim RobeyFeb 7, 2023
The endgame could be… sharper. There’s an elaborate hoax that’s too easy to suss out – even for us, and we’re not the seasoned con artists on the receiving end. At this point, the film’s own confidence seems to falter just a fraction. Then again, the chinks in these crooks’ cynical armour are what give it texture, a mottling of human desperation. Instead of smug gotchas, it traffics in mistakes. Read full review
80
The GuardianPeter BradshawFeb 7, 2023
Like the luxury goods that in one scene we see being stolen, the performances are out of the top drawer, and it is a great pleasure to see Moore on such good form: no one cries more needily, and with more nakedly sinister intent, than her. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleSteve DavisFeb 9, 2023
Sharper ticks so assuredly in execution the hitches won’t distract you – and that may be the biggest con of all. Read full review
77
Paste MagazineNatalia KeoganFeb 10, 2023
The heist-adjacent film presents a mesmerizing vision of New York that relishes in the city’s more intimate details while painting an overarching picture of those who survive by scamming one feckless schmuck after another. Read full review
75
The Film StageDan MeccaMar 9, 2023
Featuring multiple lead characters, many points of view, and more twists than a Twizzler, this construct may feel convoluted in spots. Yet it is a concise, well-told piece of entertainment that’s smart enough to know being too clever can be a crutch. Read full review
75
ABC NewsPeter TraversFeb 17, 2023
Even though the ending fizzles out, the star power of Julianne Moore and Sebastian Stan turns this tale of con artists on the hustle among Manhattan one-percenters into a sleek, sexy sophisticated thriller with twists that won’t quit. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleFeb 10, 2023
Sharper works like a machine, and so it seems unfair to complain that, by the end, it feels too mechanical. It’s fun. It should have been more fun, but take the fun where you can get it. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperFeb 9, 2023
An enjoyable and slick little thriller with a brilliant cast of actors clearly having a good time sinking their teeth into the salacious material. Read full review
75
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanFeb 8, 2023
In the case of Sharper, we’re treated to puzzle boxes within puzzle boxes, each one delivered in sequential chapters — titled after the film’s main characters, Tom, Sandra, Max and Madeline — and unpacked, initially in reverse chronological order, with satisfying, if somewhat predictable, style and suspense. If you’re seeking substance, look elsewhere. Read full review
75
The Associated PressJake CoyleFeb 8, 2023
A slinky, slick caper that finds ways to distort expectations while unfolding a puzzle-box narrative. Read full review
75
Movie NationRoger MooreFeb 8, 2023
As dark as “The Grifters,” as over-the-top as “The Sting,” Sharper is a fresh take on a time-tested genre, a “Who can you trust?” tale from the Land of the Big Con. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesNoel MurrayFeb 17, 2023
It’s stylish and well-acted, and it does keep viewers guessing. It does its job well. It’s a pretty-looking puzzle. Read full review
67
IndieWireKate ErblandFeb 7, 2023
You might know where this is all going, but damn if you won’t enjoy the wild ride there. Read full review
66
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Barry HertzFeb 15, 2023
When the narrative knife is as dull as it is here, there is just no fun in bleeding out. If Caron and his collaborators don’t learn their lesson, though, at least we will. Work smarter, not Sharper. Read full review
63
The Seattle TimesMoira MacdonaldFeb 17, 2023
Great acting is a con game, of the highest order, and it’s a pleasure to be Moore’s mark. Read full review
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