The Humans

Name: The Humans
Genre: Drama
Released: November 24, 2021
Duration: 108 min
Rating: 78
Cast: Amy Schumer, Beanie Feldstein, Jayne Houdyshell, June Squibb, Richard Jenkins

2021

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 38 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 46 Ratings

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5.8

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5.8	User Score Mixed or average reviews based on 46 Ratings

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The Humans

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Movie Details & Credits

A24 | Release Date: November 24, 2021 | R

Starring: Amy Schumer, Beanie Feldstein, Jayne Houdyshell, June Squibb, Richard Jenkins, Steven Yeun

Summary: Erik Blake has gathered three generations of his Pennsylvania family to celebrate Thanksgiving at his daughter’s apartment in lower Manhattan. As darkness falls outside and eerie things start to go bump in the night, the group’s deepest fears are laid bare. [A24]

Director: Stephen Karam

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: R

Runtime: 108 min

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Critic Reviews

100

The Telegraph Tim Robey

Jan 1, 2022

It gives you a family hanging on by a thread, and makes the careful tending of that thread feel so desperate it’s more than a little terrifying. Read full review

100

Jeannette Catsoulis

Nov 24, 2021

The confessions and tensions are commonplace, but The Humans is never less than high on the terrible power of the mundane. Read full review

Shirley Li

Dec 7, 2021

The spookiness of The Humans conveys a larger point about the intimacy of family life. The Blakes’ shaky dynamic—their passive-aggressive asides and nonchalant appraisals—could be considered normal, but by using filmmaking techniques usually reserved for ghost stories, Karam challenges that normalcy. Read full review

Slashfilm Chris Evangelista

Sep 18, 2021

The cast is dynamite across the board. The way they converse with each other feels wholly natural, as if they've been talking for years. Read full review

Saffron Maeve

Dec 21, 2021

The Humans won’t work for many – it’s a slow burn with a mean ending. Some may insist that the story lacks cogency offstage, but it’s those frenetic, intimate and often senseless moments that justify its title. Read full review

Keith Watson

Nov 22, 2021

Throughout The Humans, Stephen Karam orchestrates the highs and lows of a family reunion with Chekhovian subtlety. Read full review

Mick LaSalle

Nov 23, 2021

Not counting no-budget movies with casts of nonprofessionals, The Humans is one of the worst-directed films in recent memory. It plays like a wicked practical joke or a deliberate act of sabotage. Read full review

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User Reviews

crb

Dec 27, 2021

Well it's looks and feels like a play and thar was a plus for me. Characters were real and believable, and also very much relatable with all their fears, anxieties, hopes and needs. The acting was also very good, and the camera movement and editing immersive. The scary part about it was notWell it's looks and feels like a play and thar was a plus for me. Characters were real and believable, and also very much relatable with all their fears, anxieties, hopes and needs. The acting was also very good, and the camera movement and editing immersive. The scary part about it was not the house itself as much but rather the fears of the people living in it.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

ryanoliveira3

Dec 17, 2021

One of the best stage to screen adaptations of all time. It’s unique, and dark and humorous. Brilliantly acted.

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

Brent_Marchant

Nov 26, 2021

Though somewhat slow to get started and occasionally running aground on narrative sandbars, writer-director Stephen Karam's debut feature of his own one-act stage play nevertheless delivers a quietly chilling yet macabrely humorous take on a dysfunctional family's Thanksgiving celebration.Though somewhat slow to get started and occasionally running aground on narrative sandbars, writer-director Stephen Karam's debut feature of his own one-act stage play nevertheless delivers a quietly chilling yet macabrely humorous take on a dysfunctional family's Thanksgiving celebration. This creepy, slyly sinister comedy-drama about six family members coming to terms with their fears, secrets and often-strained connections delights with surprises and touches of whimsy while simultaneously exploring the darker side of human nature in all its bald-faced, unrepentant ugliness. The superb ensemble of Richard Jenkins, Jayne Houdyshell, Amy Schumer, Beanie Feldstein, Steven Yeun and June Squibb blends seamlessly, providing viewers with a delicately balanced mix of personalities, all finely tuned to interact with and play off of one another. With its often-dark ambiance and ghoulishly enigmatic cinematography, "The Humans" may not be the kind of idealized Rockwell-esque picture one would typically associate with the holidays, but it makes for an intriguing alternative to the sugarcoated fare one typically sees at this time of year while providing more than its share of spooky laughs and incisively comic jabs along the way.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

livinmediocre

Nov 24, 2021

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Far too much of this film is wasted on trying to be hyper-realistic rather than helping the characters find any release to the problems they're persistent with. Nothing changes from start to end. We just start in, and so begins the chaos of trying to have a happy Thanksgiving with a family who can't seem to stand to be around each other.

Also, I know it's been said, but there is no way that Brigid and Richard can afford the apartment they live in, even as run down as it is. Something that size where they don't do much other than bartending, and to be honest I'm not sure what else it's not mentioned that much.
It's not necessarily a fault to the film, because who cares, just something that bugged me the whole time.

I'm usually a huge sucker for films that make my anxiety peak, but being in the environment of this film just brought me to near panic attack moments in advance of actual Thanksgiving with parents and in-laws-to-be.

Wish more of this movie, even a few more minutes, was devoted to MoMo. That's where, I think, the heart of this movie lies. Every single character sans Richard has this really deep connection to her and her depleting mind and health. But it's given only a couple of brief moments where she wanders off or gets in sync with the rest of the family for a bit.

All in all, while this had great performances, and I did like the barebones approach to the film in terms of its set design, it falls pretty flat and is a bit of a letdown by the end of its runtime.… Expand

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

TVJerry

Nov 25, 2021

This title could be pretentious or mundane, but in this case, it’s both. The parents (Richard Jenkins Jayne Houdyshell) come to share Thanksgiving dinner with their daughter (Beanie Feldstein) and her new beau (Steven Yeun) in their grubby Chinatown apartment. Toss in the sister (AmyThis title could be pretentious or mundane, but in this case, it’s both. The parents (Richard Jenkins Jayne Houdyshell) come to share Thanksgiving dinner with their daughter (Beanie Feldstein) and her new beau (Steven Yeun) in their grubby Chinatown apartment. Toss in the sister (Amy Schumer) and grandma (June Squibb) for the entire cast. This is not a typical dysfunctional family drama, although there’s some of that. Instead of a cogent narrative focus, there are small moments that focus on various combinations of characters and their issues. Writer/director Stephen Karam adapted this from his 2016 Broadway play and chose some unusual cinematic techniques, including camera setups that either show the scene from another room or obscure the characters that are speaking, depriving us of close-ups and sabotaging any emotional power. There are also lingering shots of the decaying apartment, which I’m assuming is supposed to reflect the rot in their relationships. At least Karam chose a cast that inhabits their roles with a natural rhythm, which works for this quietly observational drama.… Expand

0 of 4 users found this helpful04

moviemitch96

Nov 28, 2021

Based off of Stephen Karam's one-act play of the same name and directed by him as well, it's just another Thanksgiving drama in a long line of MUCH superior ones, such as 'Krisha' or 'Pieces of April's for example. This film adds absolutely nothing new or exciting to Thanksgiving dramaBased off of Stephen Karam's one-act play of the same name and directed by him as well, it's just another Thanksgiving drama in a long line of MUCH superior ones, such as 'Krisha' or 'Pieces of April's for example. This film adds absolutely nothing new or exciting to Thanksgiving drama subgenre and provides very subpart and mediocre performances from the likes of Beanie Feldstein and Amy Schumer, both of whom seemed horribly miscast in this. Steven Yeun is decent, but the only real standout performance here is Richard Jenkins, but even his presence isn't near enough to save this pretentious bore of a film. Overall, it's just another wannabe entry in a long line of Thanksgiving dramas brings absolutely nothing new to the table. It's just boring and forgettable… Expand

0 of 3 users found this helpful03

AquilaHenry

Nov 25, 2021

A mess, a mess, a mess, a mess, a mess, a mess, a mess, a mess, a mess, a mess, a mess!

0 of 5 users found this helpful05

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