The Dinner
Orchard, The | Release Date: May 5, 2017 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 30 Critic Reviews
Positive:
12
Mixed:
15
Negative:
3
Watch Now
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
Total FilmJames MottramDec 11, 2017
Loaded with flashbacks, it’s unevenly mounted but kept watchable by the lively script and classy cast. Read full review
60
We Got This CoveredLauren Humphries-BrooksApr 27, 2017
An imperfect but fascinating film, The Dinner's stellar cast delivers a deeply troubling and psychologically complex treatment of class and family. Read full review
60
The TelegraphTim RobeyFeb 18, 2017
These characters get ghastly fast. It’s the pace and panic of modernity Moverman grasps best as morally corrosive forces: the soft ping of iPhone email alerts never letting us be, and consciences wiped clean as quickly as the next news cycle whips around. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterBoyd van HoeijFeb 18, 2017
A high-carat cast...tears into the juicy material with relish for the most part, but by trying to keep the prolonged sit-down affair from becoming excessively stagey, Moverman adds too many distracting flashbacks to maintain the original’s hard-hitting and well-aimed gut punch. Read full review
50
The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisMay 4, 2017
Despite frequent flashbacks and Bobby Bukowski’s richly dimensional photography, the movie has a static, stagy look that amplifies the oppressiveness of its increasingly unpleasant exchanges. Read full review
50
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd May 4, 2017
The Dinner wants to chill bloodstreams by revealing what decent, civilized people — the kind that adopt children from other countries, consider their politics liberal, and wine and dine in high class — are truly capable of. But as food for thought goes, that’s pretty lukewarm. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleDavid LewisMay 4, 2017
As we watch these four pros in action, we find ourselves wanting fewer flashbacks and more time with all of the folks in one spot. That would have been a satisfying meal in itself. Read full review
50
Entertainment WeeklyChris NashawatyMay 4, 2017
On paper, writer-director Oren Moverman’s The Dinner has all the ingredients for what should be a four-star feast. But from the opening course, it’s clear that something has gone wrong in the kitchen. Moverman, the chef, has tried to make his creation too clever and complicated. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsMay 4, 2017
The finished product feels tonally indistinct and plays as a bit of a grind. Read full review
50
Boston GlobeTy BurrMay 3, 2017
An acrid family affair that has been aggressively over-directed by the talented Oren Moverman (“The Messenger”) and brought to intermittent life by a very good cast. Read full review
50
Village VoiceKristen Yoonsoo KimMay 3, 2017
The beauty of a single-location thriller is how the tension escalates in containment, but Moverman fails to seize that built-in advantage. Read full review
50
Screen DailyLee MarshallFeb 18, 2017
In Moverman’s hands, it becomes a contemporary American fable about savagery lurking behind civilised facades, about class and racial divisions in a country that calls itself united, and about ethical vacuums in a connected, online society. It’s also an unbalanced, uneven ride, a distracting hot and cold shower of intense scenes featuring four terrific actors and long, meandering passages of flashback filler. Read full review
42
The Film StageRory O'ConnorFeb 18, 2017
You get the sense that Moverman may just have bitten off a little more than he can chew. Read full review
40
EmpireJonathan PileDec 12, 2017
What promised so much, delivers so little thanks to a script that too often veers from the point. A missed opportunity. Read full review
40
Time OutCath ClarkeDec 5, 2017
The performances are thoughtful, and like a pinch of chilli, heat things up from time to time. But director Oren Moverman’s portrait of smug, toxic privilege misses its mark – and at the end of two long hours, this feels about as fresh as last night’s chips. Read full review
More From This Movie

57 Critic Reviews

4.6 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 71 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL