The Bay
Lionsgate | Release Date: November 2, 2012 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
65
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 20 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
6
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
The GuardianDavid CoxOct 29, 2012
Levinson has always been acutely interested in the minutiae of human behaviour, and it's this concern that makes The Bay the triumph that it is. Read full review
91
Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumNov 1, 2012
One hell of a creepy little eco-horror picture. Read full review
90
NPRJeannette CatsoulisNov 1, 2012
This astonishingly effective environmental nightmare is based on reasoning that, if you've been following the science, seems all too possible. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubNoel MurrayOct 31, 2012
The result is surprisingly satisfying, like "Jaws" for the YouTube/Skype era. Read full review
80
SalonAndrew O'HehirNov 4, 2012
Is it, on some level, '70s-style horror schlock dressed up with contemporary gimmicks? Sure, but don't act like that's a bad thing! It's schlock with honor, schlock with a conscience, schlock that speaks to the way we live now. Read full review
80
Time OutJoshua RothkopfOct 31, 2012
The Bay, a real creepfest, joins the suggestive company of eco-terror entries like Hitchcock's "The Birds" and 1979's "Prophecy." Read full review
75
Washington PostSean OConnellNov 2, 2012
A ripped-from-the-headlines psychological chiller that burrows under the skin with its terrifyingly local twist. Read full review
75
IndieWireEric KohnNov 1, 2012
The Bay manages to scare up a real fear of environmental neglect. It's quite possibly the first example of jump scares used in service of activism. Read full review
75
The PlaylistDrew TaylorNov 1, 2012
Levinson is interested in humanity, in the small moments that make us who we are, and it's these moments that make The Bay so chilling. Read full review
75
ObserverRex ReedOct 30, 2012
Best of all, I applaud the director's triumph of intimate terror over preposterous puppets and noisy computer-generated effects. In The Bay, the mayhem is both fresh and thrilling. Read full review
70
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzNov 6, 2012
It's a small movie but an effective one, using found footage as a means to an end and not as an end in itself. More like it would be a welcome trend.
63
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertNov 7, 2012
Although there are some scary moments here, and a lot of gruesome ones, this isn't a horror film so much as a faux eco-documentary. Read full review
63
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsNov 1, 2012
The Bay is better than a shallow exercise, but crabby horror fans may have preferred that Levinson took a real plunge. Read full review
60
Total FilmMatt GlasbyFeb 16, 2013
All prologue and no pay-off, but compelling all the same, this curio plays out like Diary Of The Dead with more diaries and fewer dead. Read full review
60
Village VoiceKarina LongworthNov 1, 2012
Despite a handful of legit creepy moments, the film's concern with superficial realism prevents it from really hitting home; its fuzzy, fractured depiction of disaster never comes close to conjuring the "holy shit it could happen here don't touch that doorknob" real-world paranoia of last year's artfully Hollywood-ized disaster film, "Contagion." Read full review
50
Boston GlobeWesley MorrisNov 1, 2012
Lacks the creepy immediacy of even the most misbegotten of the found-footage genre. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineChris CabinOct 29, 2012
The Bay is Barry Levinson's most engaged and entertaining movie since "Wag the Dog," which isn't to say that he's given up his irksome predilection for a certain bullish type of liberalism. Read full review
40
Los Angeles TimesMark OlsenNov 2, 2012
The story becomes more ridiculous as it escalates, the film's over-determined ecological focus undermining any real horror movie tension. Levinson's casting choices are off-the-mark as well - star Kether Donohue is just plain bad. Read full review
40
The New York TimesA.O. ScottNov 1, 2012
There is a lot of nasty stuff to look at, but very little that is genuinely haunting, jolting or terrifying. Read full review
25
New York PostLou LumenickNov 1, 2012
The Oscar-winning director of "Rain Man" - whose last film, the abysmal documentary "PoliWood" never went much further than the Tribeca Film Festival - demonstrates he can make a shakycam found-footage horror movie every bit as fake-looking, clumsy and unscary as your average college student working on a $200 budget. Read full review
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