The Man Nobody Knew: In Search of My Father, CIA Spymaster William Colby
First Run Features | Release Date: September 23, 2011 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
71
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 11 Critic Reviews
Positive:
10
Mixed:
1
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
63
Boston GlobeMark FeeneyNov 17, 2011
The family snapshots are more revealing. The sight of Colby wearing a tie at family picnics really says something about the sort of man he was. But they're not that much more revealing. Read full review
88
Philadelphia InquirerSteven ReaJan 19, 2012
At once a deeply personal film and an important historical document, The Man Nobody Knew leaves us with an incomplete portrait of a man. Did Colby have a moral core? Did he know what was truth, and what was a lie? Did he sanction assassination plots? Did he love his family? Was he even capable of love? Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleAmy BiancolliDec 1, 2011
Even his wife barely knew him, recalling for her son the peculiarities of raising a family amid Daddy's cloak and dagger - and if she's baffled by his behavior, what hope is there for anyone else? Read full review
75
Slant MagazineKalvin HenelySep 23, 2011
At the same time that director Carl Colby probes into the true character of his mysterious father through an arsenal of interviews with those that knew him, he gives equal weight to the dark chapters of America's history that his father's life traversed. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubAlison WillmoreSep 21, 2011
The Man Nobody Knew is far better with matters of the public record than with matters of the home, which may sum up its subject better than any talking-head interview. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckSep 24, 2011
Carl Colby's deeply felt exploration of his father's life and career is as emotionally, as it is historically, intriguing, even if the filmmaker ultimately admits that he's never quite able to get to the bottom of his subject's enigmatic personality. Read full review
80
The New York TimesAndy WebsterSep 22, 2011
Carl Colby's smart, fact-packed film The Man Nobody Knew operates on many levels, all riveting. Read full review
80
Time OutDavid FearSep 20, 2011
The film occasionally skews a little on the PBS-dry side, but in terms of looking back on a legacy of American skullduggery and high-level shenanigans, its access and acknowledgment of our dark past make for one intimate indictment. Read full review
70
VarietyRonnie ScheibSep 22, 2011
Oddly, the director's personal connection with his subject adds little warmth, filmmaker Carl proving nearly as unemotional as his deadpan dad. Read full review
80
Village VoiceAaron HillisSep 20, 2011
Respectful, loving, but never lionizing, Carl's thorough investigation transcends his personal catharsis to become an enduring treatise on how character flaws affect policy. Read full review
70
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternOct 13, 2011
The Man Nobody Knew is packed with knowledge of another sort. It amounts to an absorbing, sometimes appalling course in how U.S. foreign policy evolved and functioned following World War II. Read full review
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