The Muse
October Films | Release Date: August 27, 1999 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 29 Critic Reviews
Positive:
15
Mixed:
11
Negative:
3
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Washington PostDesson Thomson
The list of great moments is virtually endless. Read full review
88
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
A real gem: a deadpan fantasy that turns into one of the best pictures ever about the post-"Star Wars" studio moviemaking era. Read full review
88
Boston GlobeJay Carr
The season's brightest piece of counterprogramming. Read full review
80
The New York TimesJanet Maslin
A delectable comic performance by Sharon Stone. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth Turan
The sharpest inside Hollywood comedy in quite a while. Read full review
75
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
Clever, often hilarious, inside-Hollywood farce that makes the most of... a delightfully absurd premise. Read full review
75
Christian Science MonitorDavid Sterritt
It's so clean a film, you could bring your grandmother. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven Rea
Laceratingly funny Hollywood comedy. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Good but not great Brooks... but smart, funny -- and edgy. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
One of the more intelligent comedies out there this summer -- it's not Brooks' best. Read full review
67
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
You're looking for the mammoth home run, and the film is merely a bloop single. Read full review
63
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
No second or third act... a one-joke premise and a hundred punchlines. Read full review
63
USA TodaySusan Wloszczyna
It's a case of laughing at Brooks but not necessarily with him. Read full review
63
New York PostRod Dreher
Begins so briskly and promisingly to stumble aimlessly and flat-footedly to a surprise finale. Read full review
63
Mr. ShowbizKevin Maynard
Brooks' least satisfying film in quite a while. Read full review
60
Film.comRobert Horton
Enough well-conceived jokes that the whole thing works very nicely. Read full review
60
Village VoiceJ. Hoberman
As consistently funny as it is smartly tooled. Read full review
50
Baltimore SunAnn Hornaday
A toothless series of vignettes rather than an insider satire on par with, say, "Bowfinger." Read full review
50
Miami HeraldRene Rodriguez
A blatant sell-out, a wink-nudge pander to Hollywood, disguised as satire.
50
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
The execution of the script is perfect, as always, but it's the laziest script Brooks has ever directed. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleEdward Guthmann
Largely and insider's joke. Read full review
50
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
Most of the time the movie limps amiably toward its feeble conclusion. Read full review
42
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
An embarrassment--a fairy-tale showbiz satire that seems to defang itself, scene by scene. Read full review
40
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
Some good lines notwithstanding, this is a real disappointment. Read full review
40
Dallas ObserverHal Hinson
The material turns out to be far soggier in the execution. Read full review
40
Rolling StonePeter Travers
Built on a slender, one-joke whimsy -- and a tough one to buy into, at that.
30
L.A. WeeklyManohla Dargis
If only the whole thing were as funny as an Albert Brooks movie. Read full review
30
Film.comErnest Hardy
Derivative, cliché-ridden and old hat. Read full review
20
SalonStephanie Zacharek
As The Muse chugs along, it becomes more apparent how tired and pointless it is. Read full review
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