The Journey
IFC Films | Release Date: June 16, 2017 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
53
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 21 Critic Reviews
Positive:
8
Mixed:
11
Negative:
2
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
78
Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovJul 5, 2017
Spall and Meaney are mesmerizingly watchable in a film that’s 40% gruff dialogue and 60% seething silences. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleDavid LewisJun 29, 2017
When The Journey keeps its eyes on the road, it’s a nice little drive. Read full review
70
Village VoiceNick SchagerJun 15, 2017
The film is buoyed by its sharp, witty lead performances, with Spall’s holier-than-thou imperiousness clashing suitably with Meaney’s more affable obstinacy. Read full review
70
Screen DailyLee MarshallJun 13, 2017
Although it breaks no new ground, there’s heart, humour, charm and even a little healthy mischief in a film that re-imagines the rapprochement between the two former foes. Read full review
70
VarietyOwen GleibermanJun 13, 2017
The Journey, thanks to its buddy-movie structure, is destined to feel a little corny, but the movie gets at something real. It’s a celebration, by two splendid actors, of the art of political theater. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Brad WheelerJul 6, 2017
The film is dialogue-heavy, easily imaginable as a two-hander for the stage, but watching the ice-thawing process between the two enemies is less compelling on screen. Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliJun 29, 2017
At its best, The Journey is riveting drama, with Paisley and McGuinness acting as proxies for the two sides in the long-simmering, bitter civil war that divided Northern Ireland for 40 years along sectarian lines. Read full review
63
Movie NationRoger MooreMay 28, 2017
The Journey‘s wonderful stars — Spall, Meaney, Highmore, a testy Stephens and of course Hurt — make this sentimental saunter go down easily. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleJun 22, 2017
While Hamm and Bateman have the right idea overall, their love of contrivance too often gives The Journey the sense of being reverse-engineered to explain a breakthrough rather than driven by the messy, human possibilities of their what-if. Read full review
60
VoxAlissa WilkinsonJun 15, 2017
The Journey is the rare hopeful political film rooted in both reality and very recent history. Read full review
60
The New York TimesAndy WebsterJun 15, 2017
Though the script tilts to the didactic, the performances are absolutely delicious, with Mr. Meaney droll and understated and Mr. Spall fiery and derisive, yet not above a joke. Read full review
60
Total FilmNeil SmithJun 13, 2017
Irish politics made accessible with the help of a playful script, two fine performances and 11 years of hindsight. Read full review
58
Paste MagazineJake Kring-SchreifelsJun 15, 2017
A well-acted, well-reasoned two-hander that struggles to swerve around the contrivances of the genre. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterNeil YoungJul 6, 2017
Mainly of interest for the latest impressive turn from British national treasure Timothy Spall — snorting and blustering his way through the plum role of Protestant uber-firebrand Ian Paisley — deficiencies in script and direction render the vehicle less than road-worthy. Read full review
50
Washington PostStephanie MerryJul 6, 2017
Every element of the movie feels fabricated, from the stilted conversation to the ­all-too-convenient obstacles the movie keeps throwing in the path of progress. Read full review
50
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerJun 16, 2017
An unconvincing talkathon that might have worked better on the stage as a two-man showpiece. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineKenji FujishimaJun 11, 2017
Paisley and McGuinness's intellectual back and forth is rendered so compellingly that one wishes the filmmakers didn’t feel a need to resort to a surfeit of momentum-killing plot contrivances. Read full review
40
The GuardianPeter BradshawJun 13, 2017
It’s a strained, dramatically inert and often frankly silly odd-couple bromance fantasy about the Northern Ireland peace process negotiations. Read full review
40
The TelegraphRobbie CollinMay 22, 2017
Almost every last breath of The Journey is extraordinarily badly written, from the various contrivances that bring the two men together without supervision, to the verbal sabre-clashing that ensues. Read full review
38
Boston GlobePeter KeoughJun 21, 2017
It is a contrived, bombastic, well-intended failure. Read full review
38
RogerEbert.comSheila O'MalleyJun 16, 2017
The final exchange between Paisley and McGuinness, when they shake hands, is the best, but by then it's far too late. Read full review
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