The Choice
Lionsgate | Release Date: February 5, 2016 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
26
METASCORE
Generally unfavorable reviews based on 23 Critic Reviews
Positive:
0
Mixed:
8
Negative:
15
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
58
The Film StageMichael SnydelFeb 5, 2016
There’s a very good love story here, but it needed to be about one relationship, not the nature of romance itself. Read full review
50
Entertainment WeeklyDevan CogganFeb 6, 2016
The Choice feels like Mad Libs with some of Sparks’ laziest clichés — a romantic rowboat, a colorful small-town carnival, a jealous upper-class boyfriend — and the result is a predictable, recycled mess. Read full review
50
Philadelphia InquirerMolly EichelFeb 5, 2016
If you're looking for a reason to watch pretty people and cry, then, by all means, head to the theater. But it pales in comparison to other Sparks works, especially when it gets into medical-ethics territory. Read full review
50
New York PostKyle SmithFeb 5, 2016
I was too bored to hate the movie. Besides, who hates a stuffed animal? If it actually said something intelligent or surprising, you’d be alarmed, not pleased. Read full review
50
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperFeb 4, 2016
The Choice is classic Sparks, and by that I mean it’s a mediocre, well-photographed, undeniably heart-tugging, annoyingly manipulative and dramatically predictable star-crossed romance. Read full review
50
Arizona RepublicBarbara VanDenburghFeb 4, 2016
What grates is the lack of attention to details. There is a grating sloppiness to much of The Choice, both narratively and stylistically. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeTom RussoFeb 4, 2016
In the end, though, the film disappointingly, even lazily, shies away from being anything more than you’d expect. Read full review
42
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd Feb 4, 2016
Again and again, Sparks takes the stuff of great four-hankie melodrama—love, death, cute dogs—and grinds it into a formulaic mush. Ask more of your paperback romances. At least ask for a different one each time. Read full review
38
RogerEbert.comSusan WloszczynaFeb 5, 2016
But what might seem innocent enough on the written page is often downright silly if insulting on the big screen. Read full review
38
The Seattle TimesFeb 4, 2016
Consider your multiplex choices carefully as Valentine’s Day approaches; you might find yourself weeping tears of relief when the credits finally roll. Read full review
38
Movie NationRoger MooreFeb 4, 2016
The Choice is another endless, nearly-sinless-in-the-sun Sparks melodrama, one that benefits from a couple of charming leads and some folksy, down home humor. But that title frames it in tragedy. And that “choice” leaves this tepid romance mired in the maudlin. Read full review
30
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriFeb 9, 2016
By the time its finale rolls around, The Choice has completely undone its own spell. Read full review
25
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Brad WheelerFeb 14, 2016
The Choice’s best attractions are the talented Benjamin Walker and the watery, small-town North Carolina scenery. Read full review
25
ConsequenceClint WorthingtonFeb 9, 2016
For a film that hinges so much on the chemistry and charm of its two leads, it’s tough to recommend The Choice on even those grounds. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChronicleDavid LewisFeb 4, 2016
The Choice has a twist or two toward the end, and they’re about as cheaply maudlin as the movies get. The only choice is to make sure a barf bag is nearby. Read full review
25
Slant MagazineEric HendersonFeb 4, 2016
Most Nicholas Sparks adaptations say, in cinematic terms, nothing so complicated as "roses are red." This one just points to a garden and shrugs. Read full review
20
Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovFeb 10, 2016
Go back and re-watch Nick Cassavetes’ vastly superior "The Notebook" and steer clear of director Ross Katz’s grindingly dull, Valentine’s Day folly. Read full review
20
Time OutAnna KingFeb 5, 2016
Romance, tragedy, toned bodies, conservative values: It can only be the latest from Nicholas Sparks. Read full review
20
Los Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinFeb 4, 2016
There's such mechanical artifice at work that it's hard to do more than squirm and groan at the couple's ultimate travails. Read full review
20
TheWrapDave WhiteFeb 4, 2016
The scenery is nice. Everything and everyone is very clean. Walker and Palmer, as the lovers, work with what little they’ve been given. But none of those elements are of any real consequence. There is no surprise, and there is nothing to care about. Read full review
20
The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckFeb 4, 2016
The Choice is the cinematic equivalent of staring at a Hallmark Card for two hours. Read full review
20
VarietyAndrew BarkerFeb 4, 2016
Director Ross Katz’s The Choice, which mimics “The Notebook” in everything but meaningful conflict, believable characters, style and emotional honesty, is a very unsuccessful story. Read full review
10
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisFeb 4, 2016
Directed by Ross Katz and filmed like an ad for erectile-dysfunction medication, The Choice is almost repellently synthetic. Read full review
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