The Short Game
Phase 4 Films | Release Date: September 20, 2013 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
51
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 10 Critic Reviews
Positive:
5
Mixed:
4
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
Chicago Sun-Times Scott BowlesSep 24, 2013
Too fawning to be consistently gifted, but it manages to be occasionally, perhaps accidentally, profound. Read full review
88
USA TodayScott BowlesSep 19, 2013
Inspired and inspiring, this documentary about 7- and 8-year-olds competing for the U.S. Kids Golf World Championship is too fawning to be consistently gifted, but it manages to be occasionally, perhaps accidentally, profound. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesAnnlee EllingsonSep 19, 2013
Greenbaum shoots the game play especially well, employing dynamic camera work and kinetic editing to convey the drama of what non-fans might consider a static sport. Read full review
70
Village VoiceDaphne HowlandSep 17, 2013
The film works not just because it makes golf enjoyable to watch, but also because, by the end, you get to know these kids. It would be nice to see how they're doing in seven years. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeMichael WhitmerSep 19, 2013
What Greenbaum captures is compelling, and occasionally uncomfortable to watch. Sports in their purest form are played by children, who are — most of the time — much too young to be tarnished by professional-level jealousy, scandal, sacrifice, and unfair expectations. Read full review
50
The New York TimesNicolas RapoldSep 19, 2013
[Mr. Greenbaum] is observant of tears and laughter alike, but he might have made fewer sacrifices in the name of a tidy package. Read full review
40
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeSep 20, 2013
A technically polished but mostly unmoving example of a genre (the watch-kids-do-something-hard doc) assumed to be inherently charming. Read full review
40
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierSep 19, 2013
Some parents are mellow, and others have instilled emotional problems in their children. This less-than-illuminating work resembles the spelling-bee doc “Spellbound,” only with a promise of high-end endorsements and far more pampering. Read full review
40
The DissolveScott TobiasSep 18, 2013
The Short Game is like a tape-delayed Olympics: old footage, slick bios, no substance. Read full review
38
Slant MagazineEd GonzalezSep 19, 2013
This window into the world of youthful competition almost entirely disposes of social awareness in favor of routine drama. Read full review
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