This Must Be the Place
Weinstein Company, The | Release Date: November 2, 2012 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
61
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 29 Critic Reviews
Positive:
16
Mixed:
9
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
Washington PostMichael O'SullivanNov 12, 2012
Sean Penn makes a striking screen presence in This Must Be the Place, a smart, funny and original road movie by Italian director Paolo Sorrentino ("Il Divo"). Read full review
90
The New York TimesA.O. ScottNov 1, 2012
Maybe, beneath the stylistic flourishes and bursts of operatic emotion, it is a simple story of psychological struggle, about a man in midlife reckoning with the damage of his past. But to settle on that interpretation is to deny or discount the splendid strangeness of Mr. Sorrentino's vision - and also, therefore, of the curious corners of reality he discovers along the way. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertNov 14, 2012
Few actors have played a wider variety of characters, and even fewer have done it without making it seem like a stunt. Read full review
88
Slant MagazineJoseph Jon LanthierOct 28, 2012
The film believes in maturity, but only as a freely continual process of acceptance. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubMike D AngeloOct 31, 2012
This Must Be The Place practically dares viewers not to find it ridiculous, but few will accept the challenge. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzNov 15, 2012
It's hard to imagine sitting through the film without Penn in the role of Cheyenne. But there he is, in all his intense, bizarre glory, almost daring us to come along for the ride and rewarding us with a compelling trip when we accept. Read full review
80
Village VoiceChris PackhamNov 1, 2012
Sorrentino's languorous photography, understated humor, and quiet but profound dramatic reveals coil together into something organic, whole, and achingly sweet. Read full review
80
Total FilmAndrew LowryOct 27, 2012
Succeeding against the odds and adroitly blending its disparate elements, this is a fine entry into the Eurodirector-gawps-at-America subgenre. Read full review
80
VarietyJay WeissbergOct 27, 2012
Quirky, hilarious and moving, Sorrentino's first English-lingo production is a road trip of stunning scope yet deep intimacy, featuring an aged rock star-turned-Nazi hunter played by Sean Penn at his transformative best. Read full review
78
Austin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenNov 14, 2012
Mixing faded rock glory with Nazi-hunting and American road-tripping creates an odd hybrid that is completely transfixing, although some viewers are likely to find this film an awkward mishmash. The drama, however, is consistently offset by comic underpinnings, which are well-played by the actors and seamlessly presented by Sorrentino. Read full review
75
Tampa Bay TimesSteve PersallNov 14, 2012
This Must Be the Place is a movie existing in a zonked-out realm where reality smashes head-on with a train-wreck hero too strange to be real, unless you're the love child of Ozzy Osbourne and the Cure's Robert Smith. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy BurrNov 8, 2012
This isn't a great movie, but it is a special one. And Penn is something to see. Read full review
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriNov 4, 2012
The director seems to be drawing a line from the horror of the war years to the infantilism of the Boomers and rock; the father lost his innocence, and the son froze his. Read full review
70
NPRMark JenkinsNov 1, 2012
This mashup of genres and themes doesn't entirely succeed, but it is warm, funny and ably crafted. Read full review
70
The New YorkerAnthony LaneOct 27, 2012
This Must Be the Place is dazzling to behold, not least when our hero leaves Ireland. [29 Oct. & 5 Nov. 2012, p.128]
63
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsNov 23, 2012
Penn has created a colorful tour guide, but in This Must Be the Place, there's no there there. Read full review
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