The Comedian
Sony Pictures Classics | Release Date: February 3, 2017 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
40
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 37 Critic Reviews
Positive:
4
Mixed:
21
Negative:
12
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
38
New York PostKyle SmithFeb 2, 2017
In “Raging Bull” and “The King of Comedy,” Robert De Niro did stand-up comedy badly. In The Comedian he does it badly again — there’s that same air of menace and gracelessness — but this time the movie want us to think he’s brilliant. Read full review
38
St. Louis Post-DispatchCalvin WilsonFeb 2, 2017
Working from a lackluster screenplay by a squad of writers, director Taylor Hackford (“Ray”) delivers a film so low in energy that it’s almost as if it was made to assist airline passengers in falling asleep. Read full review
38
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsFeb 2, 2017
Everyone in The Comedian deserves a better movie than The Comedian. Read full review
38
The Seattle TimesMoira MacdonaldFeb 1, 2017
Every scene in this film, which stars Robert De Niro as the washed-up title character, is dragged out — kicking and screaming — far longer than it needs to be. Read full review
37
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanFeb 2, 2017
The real problem, when all is said and done, isn’t the movie but the man with the microphone in its spotlight. Despite two comedy consultants who worked on the film, De Niro’s Jackie never comes across as especially funny on stage (or especially likable off). Read full review
30
New York Daily NewsStephen Whitty Feb 2, 2017
Robert De Niro is back doing standup in The Comedian, and it's a movie made to be heckled. Full of gross jokes (and an even grosser love story), it deserves the hook — and fast. Read full review
25
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperFeb 2, 2017
With The Comedian arriving in theaters, it’s safe to say I now have only nine spaces left on my list of the 10 Worst Movies of 2017. Read full review
25
Tampa Bay TimesSteve PersallFeb 2, 2017
The Comedian is a phony movie about funny people, starring a great actor understanding next to nothing about stand-up comedy. Read full review
25
Slant MagazineElise NakhnikianJan 30, 2017
Nearly everything in Taylor Hackford's tin-eared comedy is as ersatz as the Robert De Diro character's rage is real. Read full review
25
IndieWireBen TraversNov 12, 2016
Too conventional to function as shock comedy and too angry to spark spontaneous laughs, The Comedian is a film without a purpose. Read full review
20
New Orleans Times-PicayuneMike ScottFeb 2, 2017
Maybe it would work better if the script -- which is credited to four screenwriters; never a great sign -- was actually funny. Read full review
0
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternFeb 2, 2017
Why did Mr. De Niro do it, and why would anyone pay money to see it? Read full review
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