The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys
THINKFilm | Release Date: June 14, 2002 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
69
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 31 Critic Reviews
Positive:
19
Mixed:
12
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Wall Street JournalJoe Morgenstern
Essentially a coming-of-age story set in working-class North Carolina in the 1970s. But it's so startlingly original that it transcends the genre. This is a wonderful film, from puckish start to momentous finish.
90
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
The look and feel of the film is entirely beguiling. It is deliberately not a period piece, heavy with dated styles and fads, but instead evokes a sense of timelessness. Read full review
90
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Steers refreshingly clear of the usual cliches. Character takes the wheel and dictates the action, not the other way around. Read full review
90
The New York TimesStephen Holden
The masterstroke of this small, heartfelt directorial debut (by Peter Care, from a screenplay by Jeff Stockwell) is its integration of animated sequences (by Todd McFarlane) in which action-adventure caricatures of the comic book characters parallel or comment on events in the boys' lives. Read full review
88
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
One of the most inventive, funny and ultimately tragic coming-of-age movies in years.
88
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
A fine, inventive '70s period piece about friendship, first love, and growing up to face the hard lessons of life. Read full review
80
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
Has marked affinities to "Ghost World" and "Donnie Darko." It's more amorphous and less sharply drawn than either but has an acute sense of guilty secrets and secret places. Read full review
80
Washington PostAnn Hornaday
Sharp, lively, funny and ultimately sobering film. Read full review
80
Rolling StonePeter Travers
First-time director Peter Care crafts something darkly funny and touching from a coming-of-age fable that might have drifted into formula without deeply felt performances from Culkin and Hirsch and dazzling animation from Todd McFarlane (Spawn) that brings the boys' comic fantasies to jolting life. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
The movie has no profound insights to offer, but its nimble acting and lifelike dialogue make it entertaining as well as thoughtful. Think "Stand by Me" meets "Ghost World," and you just about have it. Read full review
75
New York PostMegan Lehmann
Infused with the hazy golden glow of nostalgia and unfolds at a leisurely pace, reminiscent of "The Virgin Suicides." Read full review
75
Portland OregonianKim Morgan
It's a shame director Care didn't take more time with his characters, even making the film a bit longer to deepen the connections between them. Still, The Dangerous Lives of Altar Boys is a keen slice of teen angst and peril. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
Isn't the best coming-of-age story to hit the big screen, but it skirts new territory, and does so with a flare that earns it a recommendation. Read full review
75
Baltimore SunMichael Sragow
Foster is strident, Vincent D'Onofrio has little to do but chain-smoke thoughtfully as an accessible priest, and the physical atmosphere is hazy. Read full review
70
L.A. WeeklyChuck Wilson
The British music-video director Peter Care (making his feature debut) and screenwriters Jeff Stockwell and Michael Petroni have retained much of the wry, teen-wise dialogue from the late Chris Fuhrman's cult-hit novel, while giving his story arc a fuller, more rounded shape. Read full review
70
VarietyDavid Rooney
The film's chief shortcoming is perhaps its failure to convey a stronger, more atmospheric sense of the repressive 1970s Catholic school environment that breeds the titular boys' rebellion and wild flights of fancy. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleSteve Davis
In many ways, this is the thinking-person's teen movie. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
Like watching somebody else's flashback and wondering what you were doing then instead. Read full review
63
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
If the film had been less extreme in the adventures of its heroes, more willing to settle for plausible forms of rebellion, that might have worked. It tries too hard, and overreaches the logic of its own world. Read full review
60
New Times (L.A.)Luke Y. Thompson
Give Care and McFarlane points for trying to do something innovative with the same old thing. But realize that, as spruced up as the facade may be, this movie is indeed still the same old thing.
60
SalonStephanie Zacharek
Undone by simply trying too hard. Read full review
60
SlateDavid Edelstein
The movie says that the rebellious spirit that generates art can also consume and destroy -- that there's no undangerous way to ride the tiger. Read full review
60
Chicago ReaderTed Shen
Coming-of-age drama is pretty familiar stuff. Read full review
60
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
Young costars carry the film, creating real characters from a generally flat script and Peter Care's largely undistinguished direction, both of which conspire to keep Altar Boys' danger at a distance. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
There are moments of wonderful insight, but while the booming, fully animated adventures of the Atomic Trinity (by "Spawn" creator Todd McFarlane) that Care intercuts with the live action at first seem a good idea, they ultimately upset the film's carefully established mood. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
It's all way too heavy-handed, though nicely acted by Hirsch, Culkin, and, especially, Jena Malone. Read full review
58
Seattle Post-IntelligencerPaula Nechak
There are some nice ideas floating around this ambitious film, as well as attempts to say them in a unique way. Read full review
50
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
There are 10 minutes of animation in the film, and it could have used a few more: They have a spirited, inventive energy that the rest of this well-intentioned but awfully melodramatic movie lacks. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleCarla Meyer
A touching but odd mix of live action and animation. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneRobert K. Elder
The director's lack of restraint and overabundance of ambition makes "Altar Boys" not boring, but troubled. Read full review
50
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
The dangers in the lives of these Catholic teens are self-made; they spring from small-town boredom and lead to a conclusion that's meant to be emotionally crushing but is only slightly affecting. Read full review
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