The Life of Chuck
Neon | Release Date: June 6, 2025 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
67
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 42 Critic Reviews
Positive:
25
Mixed:
14
Negative:
3
Watch Now
Stream On
Stream On

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
60
Los Angeles TimesAmy NicholsonJun 5, 2025
If you started the movie at the end, you wouldn’t be champing to find out what happens next. But the apocalyptic opening act is pretty great. Read full review
60
VarietySiddhant AdlakhaSep 12, 2024
Any romantic notions the film might have are swiftly undone when it starts to explain the disappointing method behind its sleight of hand — until this explanation becomes the magic trick itself. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterMichael RechtshaffenSep 12, 2024
Lacking in tonal connective tissue, The Life of Chuck may still leave in its wake the desired upbeat, life-hugging effect, but it ultimately proves to be an ephemeral one — as transitory as the apparitions who usually haunt Flanagan’s more potent ghost stories. Read full review
50
Little White LiesBillie WalkerAug 22, 2025
Despite all its layers The Life of Chuck is nothing more than a set of Russian nesting dolls made entirely of borrowed brilliance. Read full review
50
The New YorkerRichard BrodyJun 17, 2025
The Life of Chuck confronts the mysteries of life and the universe and leaves no wonder at all. Read full review
50
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsJun 9, 2025
After the persuasively strange first chapter’s over, “The Life of Chuck” is a duller kind of strange. Read full review
50
TimeStephanie ZacharekJun 6, 2025
From its cute-fake soundstage-town setting to the authoritative yet chummy voice-over narration (courtesy of Nick Offerman), The Life of Chuck works doggedly to give you the warm fuzzies—and a little bit of that fuzz goes a long way. Read full review
50
Rolling StoneDavid FearJun 5, 2025
Hiddleston’s soft shoe gives you a glimpse of how the ordinary can become extraordinary. The movie surrounding it, however, seems determined to make the extraordinary seem as bumper-sticker simple and banal as humanly possible. Read full review
50
The New York TimesManohla DargisJun 5, 2025
Ejiofor fills in Marty with dabs of personality and a sense of decency that suggests that while humanity is lost, not every individual is. It’s too bad the movie doesn’t stick with Marty, who warms it up appreciably. Read full review
50
IGNA.A. Dowd Sep 12, 2024
You can admire the ambition of The Life of Chuck while still wondering if such a lightly philosophical story needed to make the leap to the screen – or if turning all of its prose into Nick Offerman voice-over was the best move. It’s less an adaptation, ultimately, than a glorified book on tape from a talented King superfan. Read full review
42
The Film StageC.J. PrinceSep 12, 2024
All technical prowess, from Flanagan to his strong ensemble cast, can only go so far when it’s in service of such shallow, offensive escapism. This is a childish take on a universal experience and everyone, from the people involved in the production to the viewers, deserve better. Read full review
40
The Irish TimesDonald ClarkeAug 20, 2025
That first (third) act functions effectively as a bewitching enigmatic short that gets away with its downbeat denouement. The audience can fill the gaps in whatever enigmatic way they see fit. Unfortunately the movie continues backwards into increasingly mawkish territory. Read full review
40
Wall Street JournalKyle SmithJun 5, 2025
The Life of Chuck is an overstuffed suitcase of a movie, one that comes off as a bit graceless and misshapen with all of the cramming and jamming. Read full review
40
The GuardianBenjamin LeeJun 5, 2025
Try as writer-director Mike Flanagan might, there’s something coldly unmoving about it all, a disjointed and dry-eyed tearjerker that never rises above Instagram caption philosophy. Read full review
More From This Movie

67 Critic Reviews

tbd User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 77 Project Hail Mary
2 75 Send Help
3 73 Hoppers
4 72 The Sheep Detectives
5 63 Normal
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL