The Fight
Magnolia Pictures | Release Date (Streaming): July 31, 2020 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
73
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 23 Critic Reviews
Positive:
19
Mixed:
4
Negative:
0
Watch Now
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
CineVueThomas AlexanderAug 4, 2020
A documentary of tremendous urgency and compassion, The Fight is essential viewing for anybody who wants to understand the present political moment. Read full review
88
RogerEbert.comMatt FagerholmJul 31, 2020
Laughter is an essential fuel when dealing with subject matter as heavy as this, and The Fight does a splendid job of humanizing its heroic lawyers. Read full review
88
The Associated PressJake CoyleJul 30, 2020
What most vividly comes across in The Fight is the never-ending nature of freedom and democracy. Read full review
88
St. Louis Post-DispatchKatie WalshJul 30, 2020
Although The Fight is swift and jam-packed with ups, downs, wins, losses, injunctions, stays, hearings and Trump speeches, the film is remarkably detailed and careful. Read full review
88
Washington PostAnn HornadayJul 29, 2020
In this engrossing and ultimately inspiring examination of ideals in action, the team behind The Fight wind up illustrating a cardinal rule of nonfiction filmmaking: When it comes to humanizing even the loftiest principles, a documentary lives or dies by its principals. Read full review
85
TheWrapSteve PondJul 31, 2020
It picks four cases that give a good overview of the ACLU’s work and all carry huge stakes; it follows lawyers who are articulate and interesting guides through the issues; and it gives each of the cases enough time to play out and also add up to a rich portrait of a complex organization Read full review
83
IndieWireKate ErblandJan 25, 2020
What starts as a blandly divided documentary eventually finds its way to something inspiring, infuriating, and unbounded by old ideas. Read full review
80
CNNBrian LowryJul 30, 2020
The American Civil Liberties Union battles the Trump administration on multiple fronts in "The Fight," an excellent documentary that captures the heady political moment for which the organization was born. Presented in a taut, tense way, it's a glimpse into what makes the ACLU tick with the pacing and stakes of a dramatic thriller. Read full review
80
EmpireDavid HughesJul 29, 2020
Wisely focusing on four key cases, The Fight is a worthy attempt to document the ACLU’s seemingly endless struggle to challenge the many constitutional violations of the Trump administration. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleJosh KupeckiJul 30, 2020
The Fight is an endlessly engaging look into the often labyrinthine legal apparatus, and the film seamlessly moves between the cases with such incredible skill that the team of editors deserve all the accolades afforded to them. Read full review
75
Boston GlobePeter KeoughJul 30, 2020
The lawyers in the film are compared to superheroes, to David and Goliath. But they know their efforts are not enough. Read full review
75
Movie NationRoger MooreJul 27, 2020
While lawyers read, in one montage, from their mountains of hate mail, there’s not a lot of balance to the film, aside from snippets of Fox News opinionators praising this or that Trump extra-legal executive fiat. Read full review
70
Rolling StoneDavid FearJul 31, 2020
The Fight may be cursed with a generic name. But it’s a 100-percent accurate one. Read full review
70
Film ThreatLorry KiktaJun 25, 2020
The Fight is a fantastic documentary highlighting the real heroes out there: the overworked attornies of the ACLU. Read full review
70
VarietyAmy NicholsonJan 25, 2020
America is so punch-drunk that The Fight often feels like it’s whacking old bruises. But that is the national psyche’s problem more than the filmmakers’. For their part, they have made a worthwhile record of the civil rights advocates combating the country’s backslide into stripping away rights for voters, immigrants, pregnant women and the LGBTQ community. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubRoxana HadadiJul 29, 2020
Snappily edited, with a visual style reminiscent of Steven Soderbergh’s modular design, The Fight tells viewers of a certain political perspective what they want to hear (that Trump is bad). Read full review
67
The Film StageJared MobarakJul 28, 2020
It takes us beyond the nuts and bolts we all heard while watching these battles unfold via the twenty-four news cycle and into the nuanced day-to-day struggles of the men and women working around the clock to curtail federal government overreach. This is the story of unrelenting, heroic lawyers. Read full review
67
The PlaylistChristian GallichioJan 25, 2020
The film is more of a curiosity, preaching to the already converted. Read full review
63
Slant MagazinePat BrownJul 27, 2020
The film justly draws attention to the perpetual work that must go into preserving democratic institutions. Read full review
60
The New York TimesBen KenigsbergJul 30, 2020
If the filmmakers succeed in wringing drama from decisions that have already come down, their efforts at character development are hit-and-miss. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterBeandrea JulyJan 26, 2020
Steinberg, Kriegman and Despres get the balance right between the legal heroes and their collaborators, the marginalized groups they are fighting to protect. Read full review
60
VoxAlissa WilkinsonJan 25, 2020
It’s both interesting and sometimes a little dull, which seems to be by design. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleG. Allen JohnsonJul 29, 2020
It’s a well-made film in many ways but also frustratingly skin-deep for a news junkie like me. Read full review
More From This Movie

73 Critic Reviews

tbd 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 72 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL