The Manhattan Project
Twentieth Century Fox | Release Date: June 13, 1986 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
61
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 11 Critic Reviews
Positive:
5
Mixed:
6
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
A clever, funny and very skillful thriller about how a kid builds his own atomic bomb. This isn't really a teenage movie at all, it's a thriller. And it's one of those thrillers that stays as close as possible to the everyday lives of convincing people, so that the movie's frightening aspects are convincing. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneDave Kehr
Believe it or not, The Manhattan Project, a thriller about a high school boy who builds an atomic bomb, is a solid, credible action film. It also contains, during this summer of violent films, a welcome pacifistic message. Read full review
70
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not Credited)
This exciting, if conventional, teen thriller effectively makes its points about the dangers of the nuclear age. It features a fine performance from Lithgow as the brilliant yet troubled scientist, and writer-director Marshall Brickman does a nice job of emphasizing human values. Read full review
70
VarietyStaff (Not Credited)
A warm, comedy-laced doomsday story. Using clever one-liners and many humorous situations, Brickman manages successfully to sugarcoat the story’s serious message. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
Though the writing gets unforgivably club-fisted and implausible toward the end, The Manhattan Project shows surprising nuance in dealing with Collet and Lithgow, who are both slow to figure out that there are limits to scientific inquiry. Read full review
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