Warrior
Lionsgate | Release Date: September 9, 2011 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
71
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 35 Critic Reviews
Positive:
29
Mixed:
5
Negative:
1
Watch Now
Stream On
Stream On
Buy on
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Stream On
Expand

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
EmpireDan JolinSep 3, 2011
It hardly rewrites the rulebook, but Warrior is a powerful, moving and brilliant sports-pic-cum-family drama. Like "The Fighter," but with kicking. Read full review
91
The A.V. ClubAlison WillmoreSep 7, 2011
For all its titular bravado, Warrior never lets the audience forget the economic and spiritual desperation driving its two main characters, who bleed for the screaming arena crowd in exchange for their shots at redemption, and offer a rare glimpse of soul in a type of film that usually isn't obliged to provide one. Read full review
91
Tampa Bay TimesSteve PersallSep 7, 2011
Warrior is a surprising gut punch, a modern-day "Rocky" saga with two mixed martial arts pugs trying to beat, choke and kick the system. Read full review
90
MovielineJen YamatoSep 8, 2011
One of the most heart-wrenching and deeply felt films of the year. Read full review
90
The New York TimesA.O. ScottSep 8, 2011
It is appropriately blunt, powerful and relentless, a study of male bodies in sweaty motion and masculine emotions in teary turmoil. Read full review
90
The Hollywood ReporterKirk HoneycuttAug 29, 2011
It's a long movie that feels short: It grabs you in early scenes, intense though low-key before all hell breaks loose, then keeps you riveted to its mostly male characters. Read full review
88
St. Louis Post-DispatchCalvin WilsonSep 9, 2011
Starts out so promisingly that it's a huge disappointment when it ultimately becomes way too predictable - and unbelievable. It's as if "Raging Bull" suddenly morphed into "Rocky." Read full review
88
ReelViewsJames BerardinelliSep 3, 2011
O'Connor gives the film a dark, moody look, which is the best choice for so many roiling emotions. This is not a traditional stand-up-and-cheer fight movie; the undercurrents are too strong and deep. Read full review
80
Chicago ReaderAndrea GronvallSep 8, 2011
This high-powered sports melodrama benefits from its strong male leads, a sinewy narrative, and the maverick attitude of MMA. But for all the contemporary references, it's essentially a spin on the story of Cain and Abel, which may be the reason it feels timeless. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzSep 7, 2011
It's a surprisingly moving film. While the fight scenes are unquestionably thrilling, the movie's best bits are not about winning and losing but about pain and, ultimately, forgiveness. Read full review
80
Village VoiceNick PinkertonSep 6, 2011
Old line-gargler Nolte remains an effortlessly moving presence, while Hardy and Edgerton embody their archetypes and handle the physical demands. Read full review
80
Boxoffice MagazineKate ErblandAug 30, 2011
Though Warrior excels at the big stuff-fighting sequences and rousing crowds and victories that all but force audiences to stand up and cheer - the film is at its very best in the small moments, the little looks. Read full review
80
VarietyJoe LeydonAug 29, 2011
An improbably effective and affecting mix of raw emotions and exciting smackdowns. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Stephen ColeSep 8, 2011
Warrior is a weirdly affecting hybrid, a 100-proof melodrama that's two-thirds Sylvester Stallone and one-third Eugene O'Neill. Think Rocky's "Long Day's Journey into Night." Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleAmy BiancolliSep 8, 2011
This is brutish, visceral stuff - a type of raw-meat violence that's undeniably cinematic but seems, to this worried parent, ill-fitted for PG-13. Read full review
75
USA TodayClaudia PuigSep 8, 2011
Warrior is a relentless, emotionally engaging family drama and underdog saga with touches of "Rocky" mixed with "The Fighter." Read full review
75
Washington PostJohn DeForeSep 8, 2011
The catharsis Warrior offers in the end is hard won, and it will take a steely viewer not to find it gratifying, however over-the-top it may be. Read full review
75
Rolling StonePeter TraversSep 8, 2011
Warrior aspires to myth. It's Cain and Abel battling it out in the face of a decidedly ungodly father before humanity goes down for the count. Strong stuff. Read full review
75
Philadelphia InquirerSteven ReaSep 8, 2011
The two leads, Edgerton and Hardy, pull off their respective roles - rising above the cliches and the melodrama - with ferocity and focus. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldRene RodriguezSep 8, 2011
The film is a brutally effective, insanely rousing piece of drama, with enough new wrinkles and ferocious acting to sweep you into its clutches. Read full review
75
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertSep 7, 2011
This is a rare fight movie in which we don't want to see either fighter lose. That brings such complexity to the final showdown that hardly anything could top it - but something does, and Warrior earns it. Read full review
75
ObserverRex ReedSep 6, 2011
It overcomes inescapable boxing and martial arts clichés and leaves you thoroughly sated, energized and wanting more. Read full review
75
Orlando SentinelRoger MooreSep 6, 2011
Warrior is a straight genre picture, a fight movie of the old school. But it's a mixed martial arts tale, and as such, it's the best MMA movie ever. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineNick SchagerSep 4, 2011
O'Conner continues to exhibit a deft knack for melding interpersonal drama with athletic competition in ways that, despite his tales' clichés, earn their melodramatic manipulations through genuine empathy for characters' plights. Read full review
75
Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanSep 3, 2011
Mostly, Warrior is a showcase for its up-and-coming stars. Edgerton, from last year's "Animal Kingdom," and Hardy, who stole scenes as the identity forger in "Inception." Read full review
67
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerSep 10, 2011
Warrior becomes increasingly shameless until, by the end, with the big fights fought, we are clearly meant to rise as one and applaud the indomitability of the human spirit. But the only indomitable thing about Warrior are its clichés. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenSep 8, 2011
Warrior resists many opportunities to seal an easy resolution, and for this you remain with it until the final punch. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeWesley MorrisSep 8, 2011
This is bench-press melodrama, and it's as manipulative as anything Bette Davis or Jane Wyman ever starred in. You can't abide the shamelessness of any of it. Read full review
63
Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsSep 8, 2011
Every time you start resisting, somehow the film makes the sale, again. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierSep 9, 2011
Has moments of power that push through a fake-out script. Read full review
60
Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranSep 8, 2011
It shows promise but finally hits things so hard, both literally and metaphorically, that it's hard not to feel pummeled yourself by the time it's over. Read full review
60
Time OutKeith UhlichSep 6, 2011
Yet it still works like gangbusters - tears will be stifled by the end of the sibling vs. sibling finale - and most of the credit should go to Hardy, Nolte and Edgerton. Read full review
50
TimeMary PolsSep 10, 2011
Warrior's three principle characterizations are compelling - Nolte in particular gives a tempered performance as the shambling, sad-eyed wreck of a dad - but not enough to mask the film's lesser elements. Read full review
40
SalonAndrew O'HehirSep 8, 2011
O'Connor chucks away everything that was interesting or dark or subtle in Warrior and replaces it with a pseudo-individualist, sub-Freudian, Tea Party-friendly fantasy. Read full review
38
New York PostKyle SmithSep 9, 2011
A cheap exploitation picture wrapped in miles and miles of stale would-be Oscar scenes. Read full review
More From This Movie

71 Critic Reviews

8.5 User Reviews

Details & Credits|Trailers

Current Movie Releases
By MetascoreBy User Score
1 81 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple
2 77 Project Hail Mary
3 75 Send Help
4 73 Hoppers
5 72 The Sheep Detectives
SEE ALL
Essential Links
New on Amazon Prime Video
New on Netflix
Coming Soon to DVD/Blu-ray
SEE ALL