Undefeated
Weinstein Company, The | Release Date: February 10, 2012 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
71
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 29 Critic Reviews
Positive:
25
Mixed:
3
Negative:
1
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Portland OregonianShawn LevyMar 29, 2012
Undefeated puts us inside his locker room, and you simply cannot fail to be moved by the human affection, commitment and passion you feel there. Read full review
90
SalonAndrew O'HehirFeb 16, 2012
Undefeated is a genuine crowd-pleaser, a rousing and inspirational flowers-in-the-junkyard fable of hope and possibility in grim circumstances. Read full review
88
Washington PostAnn HornadayMar 1, 2012
Absorbing, inspiring and terrifically entertaining, Undefeated earns its title: It's a winner all the way. Read full review
88
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertFeb 29, 2012
Undefeated is an emotional and effective film. Read full review
88
USA TodayClaudia PuigFeb 16, 2012
Deftly balancing the students' stories with that of Courtney's, the film creates a fully rounded portrait of a corner of America rarely examined. Read full review
83
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerFeb 17, 2012
I wish the directors had emphasized more of the players' personal lives apart from the football field. But, in the end, this is a documentary about Courtney and the transformative powers of caring. He works wonders on his players and they reciprocate. Read full review
83
Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanFeb 15, 2012
For a documentary that's almost engineered to lift your heart, Undefeated is very well done. Read full review
80
SlateDana StevensFeb 16, 2012
The ultimate praise given to sports movies is always, "Even if you don't care about sport X, you'll care about these characters," and that's certainly true of Undefeated (I don't, and I did). Read full review
80
The New York TimesManohla DargisFeb 16, 2012
While Undefeated travels well-tilled inspirational ground, it's also an irresistible story of football, faith and the lust for happily-ever-after black-and-white endings. Read full review
80
Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranFeb 16, 2012
Like all memorable sports documentaries - Undefeated is really an examination not of how games are won and lost but how lives are lived, how young people faced with daunting challenges come to see, often in the most dramatic fashion, what is important going forward and what is not. Read full review
80
New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanFeb 16, 2012
There are plenty of unexpected moments within this stirring film, but it's no surprise at all that it's been tapped to compete for a Best Documentary Oscar next Sunday. Read full review
80
MovielineAlison WillmoreFeb 16, 2012
Its triumphs are bittersweet, but they're irresistible. Read full review
80
Time OutJoshua RothkopfFeb 14, 2012
Moments like these turn the documentary Undefeated into a far greater thing than a real-life "The Blind Side" - it's diving deeply into knotty matters of patience and parenting, along with plenty of unfixables as well. Read full review
80
The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyFeb 14, 2012
It's impossible not to root for these guys, or to leave Undefeated without feeling enormously moved by the experience of their joys and disappointments. Read full review
80
VarietyJoe LeydonFeb 14, 2012
Enjoyably upbeat and intelligently inspiring. Read full review
80
Boxoffice MagazineMark KeizerFeb 7, 2012
It's a stirring mix of sports and human drama that exudes an almost earthy sense of genuineness. Read full review
75
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsApr 6, 2012
Unlike the benchmark sports documentary "Hoop Dreams," Undefeated doesn't have a deep penetration of poverty and race in its playbook, but it does have enough heart to make substantial forward progress. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChroniclePeter HartlaubMar 1, 2012
Undefeated is filled with wonderful narratives, which impressed academy voters enough to garner an Academy Award this week. It's a credit to directors Daniel Lindsay and T.J. Daniels that the personal stories of the kids and coaches resonate more than the wins and losses. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven ReaMar 1, 2012
Undefeated is undeniably inspirational stuff. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubScott TobiasFeb 15, 2012
It's common for coaches to take roles as father figures on a high-school and college level, but Undefeated gets into how that dynamic works on both ends, as Courtney seeks to salve the pain of his family history. Read full review
70
TimeMary PolsFeb 17, 2012
Undefeated is well-edited by director Daniel Lindsay and beautifully photographed by his co-director T.J. Martin - the shacks of North Memphis look poetically disheveled as shot from a moving car - but it is telling that the coach emerges as the "star" of this documentary. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenApr 4, 2012
Even though the film relies on many of the clichés of the form, Undefeated is a masterfully crafted work that honestly scores a touchdown. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeWesley MorrisMar 15, 2012
The movie charts its nine-game winning streak and post-season. If there's a problem, it's that there are too few moments like that one with Chavis in the locker room. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Liam LaceyMar 1, 2012
Compared to many of last year's documentaries (Pina, Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory, Cave of Forgotten Dreams or The Interrupters), this film is distinctly minor league. But it does provide the thumbs-up emotional lift of a bumper-sticker message on game day. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineGlenn Heath Jr.Feb 6, 2012
What sets Undefeated apart from the usual underdog sports story is how the filmmakers emphasize the importance of mentorship as something separate from on-the-field interactions between coach and player. Read full review
60
Total FilmTom DawsonJul 28, 2012
Familiar territory, especially if you've seen "Hoop Dreams" and "Friday Night Lights," but the intimate style offers its own rewards. Read full review
50
Wall Street JournalJohn AndersonFeb 16, 2012
One of the reasons documentaries often take so long to make is the filmmakers' need to keep their subject from giving a performance. They want something genuine, something that materializes only when the camera disappears. Nothing Mr. Courtney is says is inaccurate or, God knows, dishonest. But it isn't quite true either. Read full review
40
Village VoiceMichael AtkinsonFeb 14, 2012
Honestly, Courtney and his crew all seem like nice people, but if there's an unironic audience for this kind of romantic jock-cup fondling, I'm not interested in knowing it. Read full review
25
New York PostKyle SmithFeb 17, 2012
This indie documentary is egregiously Hollywood in spirit. That a take-charge white football coach can buck up a place like Manassas HS with some gridiron grit is a lie we want to believe. Read full review
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