Wasteman
Sunrise Films | Release Date: April 17, 2026 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
76
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 12 Critic Reviews
Positive:
10
Mixed:
2
Negative:
0

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
88
RogerEbert.comMatt Zoller SeitzApr 17, 2026
Some of the close-quarters beatings and fights are diminished by shooting and editing so chaotically that the action becomes incomprehensible. For the most part, though, it’s a powerful debut by filmmakers who understand human nature and would rather enlighten than provoke. Read full review
80
Film ThreatJacob DunstanMay 13, 2026
Meditations on the toll of waiting, the damage of estrangement and the fickleness of trust echo in a well-acted, assuredly directed, sometimes brutal, watch. Read full review
80
Screen RantLewis GlazebrookApr 16, 2026
For a film that clocks in at around only 90 minutes and doesn't tackle any one subject outright, Wasteman effortlessly makes you think about many issues. Read full review
80
The IndependentClarisse LoughreyFeb 19, 2026
Cal McMau’s debut takes the well-worn path of prison dramas, focusing on a violent feud waged between cell block bunkbeds. But there’s enough of a noxious stink in the air – the sense that all the system does is create a microcosm of the state, with even less power to scrap over – that Jonsson has the material he needs to fully mesmerise. Read full review
80
The GuardianPeter BradshawFeb 18, 2026
The performances of Jonsson and Blyth are fierce and overwhelmingly convincing. Read full review
80
Little White LiesMolly LipsonFeb 18, 2026
Wasteman doesn’t imply that either of these men is more or less deserving of being inside or that we should be rooting for one of them over the other. Both men are troubled, sad, selfish and violent, mired in trauma that Dee expresses through bravado and physical domination, which manifests more inwardly in Taylor. Read full review
80
EmpireJohn NugentFeb 17, 2026
An energetic, urgent and damning assessment of our prison crisis, Wasteman marks Cal McMau as an exciting new homegrown director. Read full review
80
Next Best PictureGiovanni LagoJan 21, 2026
Wasteman might be one of the bigger surprises this year at the Toronto International Film Festival and certainly one to keep your eyes on. Read full review
75
Slant MagazineMarshall ShafferJun 12, 2026
Cal McMau’s Wasteman illustrates why a powerful paradox about prisons makes them such a popular staging ground for psychodramas. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesTim GriersonApr 27, 2026
Thanks to the latest impressive turn from rising star David Jonsson, “Wasteman” even finds a few new notes to play within a familiar stark melody. Read full review
60
Time OutShaurya ThapaJan 21, 2026
Even if it doesn’t fully probe the socio-political realities of the prison experience, Wasteman succeeds as an emotional survival tale. Here’s a film that proves that sometimes, the most terrifying part of prison can just be who you’re locked up with. Read full review
58
IndieWireChristian ZilkoJan 21, 2026
Amid all the barbarity for barbarity’s sake, Jonsson carries the film with a deep well of unspoken regret. Read full review
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