Some Kind of Heaven
Magnolia Pictures | Release Date: January 15, 2021 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
73
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 18 Critic Reviews
Positive:
15
Mixed:
3
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
UproxxVince ManciniJan 21, 2021
Some Kind Of Heaven is a surreal, visually sublime slice of life that offers escapism and subverts it in the same breath, an enduring portrait of a particular subculture the likes of which I haven’t seen probably since Wildwood, NJ. I spent virtually the entire 83 minutes laughing, slapping my forehead, or both. Read full review
90
Little White LiesAimee KnightNov 30, 2021
Some Kind of Heaven gently prods at the incompatibility of two cherished American narcotics: freedom and comfort. Though the latter can be purchased, it comes at the cost of one’s individuality. Read full review
88
RogerEbert.comNell MinowJan 19, 2021
Robert Browning promised that old age would be "the last of life for which the first is made." But in Some Kind of Heaven, a documentary about a retirement community with a population the size of New Haven, we see that for better and worse and despite the best efforts of all involved, the last of life is filled with many of the same uncertainties, conflicts, loneliness, and fears of all the other ages. Read full review
85
Paste MagazineJacob OllerJan 19, 2021
All this seriousness about love, loss and the human needs that start up early and continue until the end aren’t without a sense of fun. Some Kind of Heaven’s glib punchlines (like its title) and aesthetic choices (like a voyeuristic camera and thrillery score accompanying Dennis’ more slimy schemes) work best when they’re paired with some nicely dry moments of undermining honesty. Read full review
83
IndieWireEric KohnJan 14, 2021
Oppenheim relishes in the strange beauty of their lives with Rockwellian precision, and the bigger picture remains elusive throughout. Look closer, however, and the movie makes a sobering point, whether or not Oppenheim intended it — that the biggest threat to American identity isn’t confronting the nature of the society so much as the people who prefer to escape it altogether, ending their lives in solipsistic bliss. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd Jan 14, 2021
Some Kind Of Heaven contrasts the dissatisfaction of its subjects with the sunniness of their surroundings, the better to stress the wide gap separating how they feel and how they’re expected to feel in a community one talking head refers to, un-ironically, as “nirvana.” Read full review
80
The Observer (UK)Simran HansMay 17, 2021
It’d be easy to mistake the director’s deadpan observation for mocking, but the space he holds for the darker aspects of his characters’ individual stories helps to puncture any cultivated cutesyness. Read full review
80
The Irish TimesTara BradyMay 7, 2021
Life in The Villages intersects with the suburbia of Blue Velvet and, in common with that dark dramatic underbelly, there’s a compelling soap opera bubbling under the sterile surface. Read full review
80
The New York TimesBen KenigsbergJan 14, 2021
Oppenheim resists easy misanthropy, showing unexpected empathy for people who have cocooned themselves from the outside world, only to confront its headaches anyway. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleJosh KupeckiJan 14, 2021
Some Kind of Heaven effortlessly blends humor and pathos into a memorable and at times unsettling study on where life’s trajectory might land us, and that is a concept that deserves more than mild contemplation. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperJan 19, 2021
Director Lance Oppenheim (who at 24 is a good half-century younger than his subjects) employs a straightforward, deadpan style that suits the material well, avoiding condescension or cutesy gimmicks as he introduces us to a number of residents of the Villages. Read full review
75
Movie NationRoger MooreJan 16, 2021
“Heaven” isn’t exactly an infomercial, but it’s not much deeper than that. Read full review
75
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanJan 14, 2021
The film deepens and grows more thoughtful — and, yes, sad — as its spotlight on the need for human connection — at any age — comes into focus. The stories of the four people at its center show Villagers to be more than statistics. Read full review
70
Rolling StoneDavid FearJan 19, 2021
Come for the snickering, it seems to say. Stay for the unexpected lump in your throat. Read full review
70
The New YorkerAnthony LaneJan 8, 2021
Oppenheim doesn’t waste much space on the upside. He aims straight for the undergrowth, and treats the Villages as one big Carl Hiaasen novel waiting to happen. Read full review
60
The GuardianCath ClarkeMay 13, 2021
Director Lance Oppenheim takes a gentle approach, capturing some hilarious moments, but there’s nothing patronising or mean-spirited about his film. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinJan 14, 2021
It’s easy enough to take this brisk documentary at face value and enjoy it for the well-shot curio that it is. And Oppenheim, just 24, is a talent to watch. Still, this movie shouldn’t preclude — and, who knows, may even inspire — a more definitive documentary about this debatable slice of “heaven.” Read full review
50
Slant MagazineChuck BowenJan 10, 2021
The film is most tragic and humorous when hints of the outside world break through the suffocatingly cheerful façade of the Villages. Read full review
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