The Adults
Variance Films | Release Date: August 18, 2023 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
73
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 14 Critic Reviews
Positive:
14
Mixed:
0
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
RogerEbert.comNick AllenAug 18, 2023
Defa’s film aligns with the notion that it’s how a story is told--how it feels--and not just what it is about. And there is so much to feel from his take on dysfunction, including how it presents siblings who can sing and dance in unison but are not friends. Read full review
83
ColliderTaylor GatesJun 15, 2023
A true dramedy, it’s as raw and painful as it is refreshing and cathartic. Though nothing is tied up in a neat little bow at the end, you’re left with an undeniable feeling of hopefulness. You’re sure to laugh, and there’s a good chance you’ll shed a few tears, too. Read full review
83
The Film StageRory O'ConnorFeb 21, 2023
It’s coarse to the touch but The Adults is a tender film. That those moments come in flashes only makes them all the more profound. Read full review
80
Wall Street JournalKyle SmithAug 17, 2023
It’s difficult to watch but beguilingly genuine in its exploration of the tortured dynamics of three adult siblings whose mother died five years earlier and who haven’t been together in three years. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesMark OlsenAug 17, 2023
Though the film is largely driven by Cera’s knowing, unsparing performance, both Gross and Lillis are also given plenty of room to develop nuance. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperAug 16, 2023
Writer-director Defa has delivered a small and quietly compelling low-key gem filled with offbeat characters who are perfectly normal — which means they’re kind of odd. Read full review
75
IndieWireSteph GreenFeb 21, 2023
It may feel a little too surreally awkward and plodding in its first hour. But as a sweet movie smartly attuned to the power of the weirdo bonds that bind us to our family no matter the geographical distance or emotional dislocation, Defa achieves a sledgehammer of an ending in which not a single word rings false or feels sentimental. Read full review
70
The New York TimesAmy NicholsonAug 17, 2023
Defa’s tight and tidy focus on communication — mostly verbal, sometimes role play (“Hug me like you haven’t seen me for three years,” Rachel instructs Eric) — adds a smart layer to this otherwise familiar tale of estrangement. Read full review
70
The New YorkerRichard BrodyAug 15, 2023
In The Adults, the wry and vulnerable simplicity of the musical numbers and the comedy routines suggests not just a realistic musical but an anti-spectacular one; the antics mesh with the drama not merely at the level of tone or style but at a conceptual one. Read full review
70
Paste MagazineJesse HassengerJun 14, 2023
True to its small, sometimes nearly microscopic, scale, The Adults draws a perfect miniature portrait of a highly specific demographic: People obsessed with doing bits, making up songs, and perpetuating their own inside jokes who nonetheless never turned to a life in the performing arts. Read full review
70
Screen DailyJonathan RomneyFeb 21, 2023
The Adults is a gift to its actors, allowing them to explore the tensed-up taciturnity of emotional repression but also to go haywire with the voices and the crazily choreographed body language. Read full review
70
VarietyGuy LodgeFeb 21, 2023
The Adults is most moving in its understanding of the trivial quips, asides and slight, splintered anecdotes that are sometimes all that remains between adult relatives who once shared richer connective tissue. Read full review
67
The PlaylistRafaela Sales RossFeb 21, 2023
Anchored by its competent trio of protagonists, The Adults would have been a lovely time if not for the overused mishmash of twee gimmicks. Read full review
63
Slant MagazinePat BrownFeb 26, 2023
The Adults affectingly captures the uniquely American ennui provoked by the banalities of a hometown and the lost utopia of childhood. Read full review
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