The Critic
Greenwich Entertainment | Release Date: September 13, 2024 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
54
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 24 Critic Reviews
Positive:
10
Mixed:
13
Negative:
1

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
85
Film ThreatSimone CromerSep 13, 2023
This period drama may be a bit slow during some scenes, but the devious dark plot is such a pleasant surprise the payoff is worth it. On top of that, The Critic has a beautiful score, excellent set design, and great cinematography. Read full review
83
ColliderIsabella SoaresSep 20, 2023
A film filled with intensity, this is a worthwhile, deliciously vile watch. Read full review
80
VarietyJoe LeydonJan 17, 2025
The film is a heady brew of period thriller, compelling melodrama and jet-black comedy, and the second most remarkable thing about it is how seamlessly these diverse elements gel. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleKimberley JonesSep 12, 2024
McKellen – now in his mid-Eighties, still sporting – hasn’t brought this kind of twinkling malevolence to the screen since his starring role in 1995’s Richard III, which coincidentally transposed its story of power grabbing and backstabbing to 1930s, fascists-rising England, the very same milieu of this acidic drama. Read full review
77
TheWrapSteve PondSep 13, 2023
The movie leans into the melodrama, taking its time and milking the situation for all its worth. Read full review
75
Washington PostTy BurrSep 12, 2024
At 85, Ian McKellen doesn’t have many performances left in him, so any movie that lets the actor carve ham with such exuberant relish as “The Critic” is worth his time and ours. Read full review
75
Original-CinLiz BraunSep 12, 2024
This critic says The Critic is an imperfect film saved by a terrific cast. In particular, Sir Ian McKellen steals the show as a preening newspaper god in 1930s London. Read full review
63
RogerEbert.comNell MinowSep 13, 2024
McKellen is the reason to see “The Critic.” This extraordinary actor could not wish for a character better suited to his depth of understanding and experience. Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliSep 12, 2024
Although the movie disappoints late in the proceedings by pandering to cliches, few will be so bored as to leave before the curtain comes down. Read full review
63
The Associated PressLindsey BahrSep 11, 2024
Theater critic as tyrant is a juicy premise; “The Critic” just can’t live up to the promise. Read full review
60
The Irish TimesDonald ClarkeSep 12, 2024
By the close, one is left befuddled. Is this a tragedy? Is this a comedy? Is it a moral fable? Cruelty to Homo criticus is the least of its problems. Read full review
60
The GuardianPeter BradshawSep 12, 2024
The film has an odd teatime glow of cosy-crime sentimentality which deadens the effect, and this period drama can’t quite bring itself to show that, in the 1930s, murder was punishable by death. But McKellen overrides these concerns; his glorious star quality and dash make him the only possible casting. Read full review
60
The GuardianBenjamin LeeSep 11, 2023
The fizz of the first half might not go completely flat in the second but that’s only because of McKellen, who relishes another devious character to sink his teeth into, devouring every scene, a deliciously caustic turn that will provide him with nothing but the finest notices. Read full review
50
Screen RantRachel LaBonteSep 19, 2024
The Critic was far less fun than I had hoped it would be. Read full review
50
The New York TimesBen KenigsbergSep 12, 2024
Visually, The Critic is polished enough, despite some splashes of apparent digital lacquer. But Marber hasn’t supplied an incontrovertible motive to bind Nina to Jimmy. And there is something arguably troubling about the way McKellen’s character has been conceived. Read full review
50
Screen DailyTim GriersonSep 11, 2023
The elegant tone undercuts the material’s inherent bite, ultimately defanging a picture that eventually shifts into a twisty thriller. Read full review
42
The Film StageAnkit JhunjhunwalaSep 25, 2023
In its quest to surprise audiences, The Critic jumps down too many rabbit holes, progressively losing all semblance of plausibility or insight it might’ve otherwise yielded. Read full review
42
The PlaylistGregory EllwoodSep 11, 2023
To say Farber’s screenplay is plot-heavy is an understatement. Read full review
40
The Observer (UK)Wendy IdeSep 16, 2024
Despite reported reshoots and a fresh edit after the film’s coolly received premiere last year, its sour spirit and a cluttered, clumsy third act remain a problem. Read full review
40
EmpireHelen O'HaraSep 16, 2024
McKellen has fun as the bitter, biting Erskine, but the plot takes so long to come together that at times he’s the only thing holding the audience’s interest. Read full review
40
The IndependentClarisse LoughreySep 13, 2024
The Critic – adapted by Notes on a Scandal’s Patrick Marber from a novel by former Independent film critic Anthony Quinn – is, ultimately, a story about power. I wouldn’t expect relatability in this case, but I do expect substance. Here, it’s largely absent. Read full review
40
Wall Street JournalKyle SmithSep 12, 2024
The film should have been cleverly dark and dripping with insider takes. Instead, it’s boringly schematic. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterAngie HanSep 25, 2023
It should hurt to watch such a relentlessly ruthless piece of work. Yet its savagery feels blunted when nearly every character but Jimmy feels underwritten and nearly every relationship built on plot contrivance. Read full review
38
Slant MagazineDan RubinsSep 12, 2024
It’s only the winking malice of Ian McKellen’s title character that prevents the film from imploding entirely, dirigible-like, as the haywire plot begins to nosedive. Read full review
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