We Are Marshall
Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: December 22, 2006 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
53
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 31 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
14
Negative:
4
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
58
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
We Are Marshall has little of the bone-crunchingsincerity of the recent pigskin rouser "Invincible." This one is more like Unconvincing. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterKirk Honeycutt
What should have been an inspirational story about fortitude and courage in the face of mind-numbing tragedy becomes a compendium of sports cliches. Read full review
60
VarietyBrian Lowry
Full of good intentions, We Are Marshall has a game plan that's hard to fault, but as with any playbook, a scheme is only as good as how well it's executed. Read full review
50
Village VoiceRob Nelson
Even by the low standards of the young-jocks-as-good-clean-soldiers movie, there's little at stake here, unless you count the kids' hunger to win one for the Gipper. Read full review
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
We Are Marshall is precisely what one expects from a true sports story: it's uplifting and inspiring. Read full review
30
The New York TimesStephen Holden
A movie like We Are Marshall stands or falls on its ability to make you feel the pain and loss of individuals in a place where community pride and football are one and the same. As the film, directed by McG (the "Charlie's Angels" movies) from a wooden screenplay by Jamie Linden, follows a handful of Huntington residents during the months after the accident, not one of them comes fully to life. Read full review
60
L.A. WeeklyScott Foundas
McG's Marshall lies at the nexus of Thornton Wilder and Norman Rockwell -- it's David Lynch without the irony -- and if he overdoes things a touch, there’s nothing disingenuous about it. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesKevin Crust
The film is injected with a refreshing energy whenever McConaughey is on-screen, balancing some of the inherent sadness of the story. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneJessica Reaves
Surprisingly restrained and undeniably entertaining. Read full review
58
Christian Science MonitorPeter Rainer
It's a powerful subject, but director McG and screenwriter Jamie Linden haul out every cliché in the playbook. Read full review
25
Rolling StonePeter Travers
No go. Marshall deserved better than this misbegotten tribute. Read full review
67
Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam Arnold
To the movie's credit, the cast is better than average. Read full review
38
USA TodayClaudia Puig
Its use of trite "Win one for the Gipper" dialogue, overbearing soaring music and conventional plot devices makes it far too formulaic to truly move us. Read full review
88
Charlotte ObserverLawrence Toppman
Filmmakers have presented an unvarnished drama about Marshall University and the people who love it, and the results are inspirational. Read full review
75
Miami HeraldConnie Ogle
Equally thrilling and wrenching, the film is an absolute must for anyone who loves sports and an eloquent explanation for those who don't understand what the fuss is about. Read full review
63
Philadelphia InquirerCarrie Rickey
McConaughey tucks into the role like a hungry man gobbling a ham sandwich. Read full review
70
Washington PostStephen Hunter
"Lost" star Matthew Fox pitches in with a strong performance as a coach who, by the laws of whimsy, didn't take the final flight home and had to struggle with survivor's guilt. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
"Charlie's Angels" director Joseph McGinty Nichol (aka McG) shows surprising restraint with this emotionally freighted material, weighting the movie heavily towards relationships. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderJ.R. Jones
Matthew McConaughey injects some much needed life as the oddball coach who sets out to rebuild the football squad, and David Strathairn, Ian McShane, and Robert Patrick do their best with sketchy characters and artless dialogue. Read full review
60
Film ThreatMark Bell
If you're a college football fan, a fan of sports films or just a sports aficionado with a sense of history, this film is a safe bet. Read full review
50
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
We Are Marshall is less a movie than a commemoration. Read full review
50
New York PostKyle Smith
Has the kind of soulful subject matter that will strike some as profoundly emotional, but it gets a flag for roughing the tear ducts. This isn't football - it's cornball. Read full review
25
San Francisco ChroniclePeter Hartlaub
May not be a very enjoyable movie, but at least the badness is in good taste. Read full review
40
Austin ChronicleMarrit Ingman
There are football movies, and then there's this 800-pound gorilla of a gridiron weepie, which should be penalized for roughing the viewer. Read full review
75
Baltimore SunChris Kaltenbach
The result is a movie that inspires without pontificating and plays on the heartstrings without pounding on them incessantly. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
The actor's (McConaughey) lovable exuberance is exactly what this heartsick movie needs. Read full review
58
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
It's uplifting, but shallow. Read full review
63
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Stephen Cole
An enjoyable time-waster, distinguished by an unexpectedly sharp comic turn by McConaughey, lots of boisterous horseplay and some stirring emotional clinches. All in all, an entirely serviceable night out for buddies looking to locate hidden feelings. Read full review
75
Portland OregonianM. E. Russell
Often as not, the movie works. Here and there, it works kind of beautifully. Read full review
40
SalonStephanie Zacharek
There are so many emotions in We Are Marshall that there's hardly any room for football -- and when we finally get some, even THAT'S clogged with excess feeling. Read full review
50
PremiereEthan Alter
We can only speculate why McConaughey chose to play the role this way, but in all honesty, it's a good thing he did. His loony performance is the only surprising thing about this otherwise paint-by-numbers inspirational drama. Read full review
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