The Lovebirds
Paramount Pictures | Release Date (Streaming): May 22, 2020 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
59
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 34 Critic Reviews
Positive:
16
Mixed:
15
Negative:
3
Watch Now
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
85
The VergeJoshua RiveraJun 9, 2020
While it’s not big on declarations of love, comic misunderstandings, or many of the genre trappings, it understands that the best romantic comedies are ones where the two leads are always talking, with each other, at each other, or past each other, constantly trying to sort out their relationship, despite whatever chaos is around them. Read full review
80
Film ThreatBrian ShaerMay 24, 2020
The film’s structural frenzy lends itself to lots of comic riffing from the leads that often results in hilarious one-liners. Read full review
80
Rolling StonePeter TraversMay 20, 2020
The Lovebirds knows how to send out a laugh with a sting in its tail. That’s what they call inspired lunacy. Read full review
80
IGNKristy PuchkoMay 20, 2020
Michael Showalter and company aren't reinventing the wheel here, but it's a solidly made wheel. Following in the footsteps of similar comedies, The Lovebirds offers a wild ride with outlandish action, plenty of popping punch lines, and a romance you can really root for. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterBeandrea JulyMay 20, 2020
With a tightly structured script and Nanjiani and Rae’s raucous yet down-to-earth performances, The Lovebirds makes for a delightful and unexpected ride. Read full review
75
PolygonKaren HanMay 27, 2020
The chemistry between stars Kumail Nanjiani and Issa Rae keeps the romantic comedy charming. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperMay 21, 2020
Thanks to the sure-handed, fast-paced work and creative framing by director Michael Showalter (an alum of “The State” who helmed the Nanjiani-starring “The Big Sick”); a clever screenplay by Aaron Abrams and Brendan Gall, and the impeccable comedic timing of Nanjiani and Rae, The Lovebirds is one of the funniest movies of 2020. Read full review
75
RogerEbert.comMatt Zoller SeitzMay 21, 2020
This is subtly acted by both leads, especially when the characters fall silent and you see shades of doubt and sadness flicker across their faces. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyLeah GreenblattMay 20, 2020
What feels freshest, maybe, is the mere fact of two leads of color taking on all the tropes of the genre and making it feel as modern as they do. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleMay 20, 2020
Sure, not everything is great. Here and there, the movie goes out of its way to be sentimental. But The Lovebirds is a pleasing comedy, funny from beginning to end. That should be enough for anybody. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubKatie RifeMay 20, 2020
The dynamic between this screwball couple is half affectionate and half exasperated, and there are enough funny lines sprinkled throughout—a personal favorite: “documentaries are just reality shows no one watches”—to keep the laughs coming. But while The Lovebirds are sparkling conversationalists, as the plot gets more convoluted, the champagne starts to go flat Read full review
75
ConsequenceMichael RoffmanMay 20, 2020
The Lovebirds is exactly what you want right now in quarantine. It’s a city-scrolling adventure with two catchy leads and romance to boot. It’s the perfect date movie. Read full review
70
TimeStephanie ZacharekMay 21, 2020
These two are both a little mad, and they’re made for each other; it takes this absurd mystery to make them see it. The screwball comedy is the truest and purest language of love. Like the song of lovebirds, it sounds like dizzy chatter—until you stop to really listen. Read full review
63
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliMay 25, 2020
The Lovebirds stands out as a worthy opportunity for home entertainment. Read full review
63
The Associated PressLindsey BahrMay 20, 2020
Rae and Nanjiani make the ride fun enough with their easy chemistry and silly, wide-eyed panic at everything they’re witnessing. Still, The Lovebirds lacks the singularity of its stars’ other noteworthy roles. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Barry HertzMay 20, 2020
A zany mix of dark comedy, slapstick, and high-concept adventure, The Lovebirds moves fast in the hopes that no one notices how messy its construction is. Read full review
60
VoxAlissa WilkinsonMay 27, 2020
Rae and Nanjiani are terrific comedians whose wisecracks and antics are thoroughly entertaining, so even if you know what the ending of The Lovebirds will be, it’s great fun watching them get there. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesMark OlsenMay 21, 2020
Rae and Nanjiani have a quicksilver chemistry, flashing from playful banter to genuine, hurtful arguing in an instant. Read full review
60
EmpireHelen O'HaraMay 21, 2020
The plot is insubstantial in the extreme, but Rae and Nanjiani are so cool, and their loose, free-flowing improv so winning, that you probably won’t care. Read full review
60
Screen RantSandy SchaeferMay 20, 2020
Although it makes for a better rom-com than murder-mystery, The Lovebirds is an entertaining romp powered to life by Nanjiani and Rae's chemistry. Read full review
60
The GuardianPeter BradshawMay 20, 2020
Nanijani and Rae work well together, although “chemistry” is perhaps a stretch. Read full review
58
The PlaylistRobert DanielsMay 20, 2020
Even if this rom-com never completely coalesces, Showalter’s The Lovebirds does ultimately deliver a worthwhile conclusion Read full review
50
CNNBrian LowryMay 21, 2020
Watching Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani riff off each other is intermittently fun, but that's all there is to recommend The Lovebirds, a dark, somewhat chaotic romantic comedy. Read full review
50
SlashfilmChris EvangelistaMay 20, 2020
Unfortunately, The Love Birds just isn’t that funny. Don’t get me wrong – Nanjiani and Rae are funny, and they try really hard to make this material pop. But the jokes fall flat more often than not, and the direction from Michael Showalter (who also directed Nanjiani in The Big Sick) is oddly lax, with scene after scene embracing the unstylish “point and shoot” approach. Read full review
50
New York PostJohnny OleksinskiMay 20, 2020
Most of their scenes come off as low-stakes dueling stand-up routines, rather than a plot that builds. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineDerek SmithMay 20, 2020
Once the film shifts into a broader comedic register, it no longer capitalizes on Kumail Nanjiani and Issa Rae’s gift for gab. Read full review
50
VarietyOwen GleibermanMay 20, 2020
Bits and pieces of the movie are funny. Read full review
42
The Film StageJake Kring-SchreifelsMay 20, 2020
The Lovebirds mostly feels algorithmic, a generic composite of romantic comedies and chase thrillers that races to a brisk 86 minutes. That’s more an indictment of the screenwriting than its two leads, Kumail Nanjiani and Issa Rae, who do their best while hopscotching around a nondescript New Orleans. Read full review
42
IndieWireDavid EhrlichMay 20, 2020
Michael Showalter’s follow-up to “The Big Sick” is as flat and algorithmic as his last rom-com was poignant and alive. The only thing the two films really have in common is a winning performance from Kumail Nanjiani. Read full review
40
New York Magazine (Vulture)Angelica Jade BastienMay 25, 2020
This is a film designed to be watched while performing a menial task — folding the laundry or washing dishes. Even during a pandemic, or perhaps especially so, we have more pressing things to do with our time than drain it away watching mediocre Netflix comedies. Read full review
40
TheWrapSteve PondMay 21, 2020
Nanjiani and Rae are funny and likable people who try very hard to bring some life to this enterprise, but the action is too preposterous for the laughs to make much headway. They’re fun to watch, in a way, but you really wish they had something better to do. Read full review
38
Movie NationRoger MooreMay 22, 2020
Desperation loses out to resignation in The Lovebirds, a flailing couple-on-the-lam comedy that pairs up Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani, with indifferent results. Read full review
38
ObserverOliver JonesMay 22, 2020
It would be easy to put the blame here on the two stars; expect a lot of misguided chatter about Nanjiani and Rae’s lack of chemistry. But if they deserve blame, it is in their capacity as co-executive producers who approved production on the anemic and half-baked script. Read full review
30
The New York TimesA.O. ScottMay 21, 2020
Rae and Nanjiani do their best, but neither the dialogue nor the direction serves their talents adequately. Read full review
More From This Movie

59 Critic Reviews

5.2 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