Where Do We Go Now?
Sony Pictures Classics | Release Date: May 11, 2012 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
60
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 25 Critic Reviews
Positive:
13
Mixed:
12
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
The A.V. ClubTasha RobinsonMay 9, 2012
What the film lacks in specificity and interest in taking sides, it makes up for in style, authentic emotion, and terrific performances. Read full review
88
Charlotte ObserverLawrence ToppmanJul 26, 2012
It's an approachable film that handles a serious topic deftly and offers a fresh take on a familiar subject. Read full review
80
New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanMay 10, 2012
While the schemes occasionally seem strained, their desperate determination is never less than compelling. Read full review
75
St. Louis Post-DispatchJoe WilliamsJun 22, 2012
With elements of a musical, a melodrama and a multicultural romance, Where Do We Go Now? is as hard to define as the crossroads region where it's set. But even without a clear signal, it sometimes seems miraculous. Read full review
75
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Rick GroenMay 25, 2012
So the interrogative title is left to hover over the ending, as it does over all those tension-filled places near and far. Speaking as a foolish man, I had high hopes for these wise women – given the historic alternative, I still do. Read full review
75
Boston GlobeTy BurrMay 24, 2012
Where Do We Go Now? has a heart and an anger to offset its structural fuzziness. It's refreshingly open-minded about faith, too. Read full review
70
New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriMay 11, 2012
Although the film's why-can't-we-all-get-along story line and even some of its quirk-laden pit stops feel familiar, the very texture of what we're seeing seems to change from one moment to the next, resulting in an occasionally breathtaking uncertainty. Read full review
70
The New York TimesStephen HoldenMay 10, 2012
At heart, this jolly, galumphing crowd-pleaser, which won the audience award at last year's Toronto International Film Festival, is a raucous sitcom about scrappy little boys whose canny mamas conspire to keep them out of trouble. Read full review
70
TimeMary PolsMay 10, 2012
Could women stop war through the sedation of sex and drugs and a plot to bury every weapon in their community? Labaki has said she knows Where Do We Go Now? is a fantasy. But it's a good one, and this lovely film seems pertinent far beyond the landscape of the Middle East. Read full review
67
Portland OregonianStan HallJul 12, 2012
The actual differences between Christians and Muslims are largely arbitrary, even irrelevant, so isn't it absurd to kill each other over how each group relates to God? Read full review
63
Philadelphia InquirerSteven ReaMay 31, 2012
Casting herself (as the proprietor of the local cafe) along with a mix of professional and nonprofessional actors, Labaki tries to get across her give-peace-a-chance message with humor, with song, with melodrama. Read full review
63
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertMay 17, 2012
The movie is never quite bold enough to point out the contradiction of Muslims and Christians hating one another, even though they both in theory worship the same god. Read full review
63
New York PostFarran Smith NehmeMay 11, 2012
It's a hodgepodge of subplots and wildly disparate tones that even Federico Fellini (to whose "Amarcord" Labaki also owes a debt) might have had trouble controlling. Read full review
60
Arizona RepublicBarbara VanDenburghJun 14, 2012
It is, at times, a charming reprieve from the usually dour cinematic explorations of Middle Eastern conflicts. But big-hearted and well-intentioned as the film is, it's frequently undone by its own silliness. Read full review
60
MovielineStephanie ZacharekMay 10, 2012
Its occasional entertainment value aside, the picture is also blithe to the point of being flimsy. Read full review
60
The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyMay 8, 2012
The film's blend of pathos, broad comedy and the occasional musical number is a little lumpy. But with sectarian violence continuing to scar the globe, its light tone provides a refreshing response. Read full review
58
Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanMay 9, 2012
The movie gets mired in these deceptive mechanics. It shows no curiosity about the hatred, so the characters seem less than whole. Read full review
55
NPRMark JenkinsMay 11, 2012
It's the sort of well-meaning fable that's ultimately more admirable than persuasive. Read full review
50
Austin ChronicleMarjorie BaumgartenAug 15, 2012
It's a "what if" story that's hopeful but doesn't ring true. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoMay 18, 2012
By the time the women pull off their climactic stunt, the film's been undone by its ungainly mix of heavy-handed comedy and melodrama. Read full review
50
Los Angeles TimesMark OlsenMay 10, 2012
The film aims to be a gentle comedy (there are even some songs approaching musical numbers) with serious undercurrents. It stumbles most when reaching for its bigger themes. Read full review
50
Wall Street JournalJoe MorgensternMay 10, 2012
An absurdist fantasy on a solemn theme, Where Do We Go Now? suffers from a serious clash of styles, but it's also brave and startlingly funny - at one point verging on "Mamma Mia!" - when it isn't bleak or shocking. Read full review
50
Slant MagazineNick SchagerMay 8, 2012
Nadine Labaki's film awkwardly hybridizes somber politizized drama with regional humor in the style of "Waking Ned Devine" and "Calendar Girls." Read full review
40
Village VoiceAlison WillmoreMay 8, 2012
Like the hashish-laced pastries the ladies make to sedate the male population, the film feels like it has been dosed with sugar to mask its distressingly bitter taste. Read full review
40
Time OutKeith UhlichMay 8, 2012
By the time the film takes a glib turn into role-switching farce - as Muslims become Christians and Christians become Muslims - the overall toothlessness of the satire becomes damningly apparent. Read full review
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