Whitey: United States of America v. James J. Bulger
Magnolia Pictures | Release Date: June 27, 2014 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
71
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 19 Critic Reviews
Positive:
15
Mixed:
4
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
100
The PlaylistDrew TaylorMar 27, 2014
What makes Joe Berlinger’s riveting new true crime doc Whitey: The United States vs. James J. Bulger such an eye-opener is that it isn’t just about a bad guy who did bad things, but the layers of corruption and moral ambiguity that stacked up on both side of the law. Read full review
91
Entertainment WeeklyJoe McGovernJun 27, 2014
With minimal conspiratorial bluster, Berlinger unmasks the compliant faces of evil. Read full review
91
IndieWireSteve Greene Mar 27, 2014
Although Berlinger’s latest work is a dense, unsparing look at the offenses and trial of Whitey Bulger, it's equally concerned with capturing how the many members of Bulger's expansive web -- criminals and innocent citizens alike -- use their experiences to control their version of the man. Read full review
88
RogerEbert.comGodfrey CheshireJun 27, 2014
The real question of culpability that provides an element of suspense here, ironically, concerns not the obvious baddies but the ostensible good guys. Read full review
83
Christian Science MonitorPeter RainerJul 11, 2014
Berlinger is after more than a true crime recounting here – the film attempts to explain, often lucidly, sometimes laboriously, how deeply entrenched Bulger was with the FBI and the police. Read full review
80
Arizona RepublicBill GoodykoontzJul 11, 2014
"Whitey" paints an ugly picture, but a compelling one nonetheless, and one that will put every Boston crime movie you see in a different light. Read full review
80
VarietyScott FoundasJul 1, 2014
"Whitey” emerges as yet another of Berlinger’s gripping, irony-laced snapshots of the American criminal justice system, in which his eponymous subject comes across as an incontestable monster who may, nevertheless, also be an unwitting patsy. Read full review
80
Time OutJoshua RothkopfJun 24, 2014
This is still one of his (Berlinger) most ambitious films, vibrating with the same municipal unease as "Chinatown." Read full review
75
Boston GlobePeter KeoughJun 26, 2014
Filmmaker Joe Berlinger isn’t so much inspired as disgusted by the notorious gangster in his newest documentary. Read full review
75
The A.V. ClubA.A. Dowd Jun 25, 2014
Provides little in the way of comforting catharsis. That may be because Berlinger, a thorough and impassioned muckraker, has managed to find hints of injustice in the justice that was served. Read full review
75
McClatchy-Tribune News ServiceRoger MooreJun 24, 2014
The fact that Bulger, at long last, is rotting in jail, is little consolation. Perhaps only a Hollywood version of this story, one starring Johnny Depp, can give it a satisfying conclusion. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesBetsy SharkeyJul 11, 2014
Joe Berlinger's densely detailed new documentary about the legendary Boston mobster is disturbing on so many levels it's hard not to wonder why Bulger was the only one on trial. Read full review
70
The New York TimesA.O. ScottJun 26, 2014
Its powerful narratives leaves you with the strong suspicion that the whole story has not yet been told. Read full review
70
Village VoiceStephanie ZacharekJun 24, 2014
Berlinger covers lots of territory, including heartrending accounts from the family members of some of Bulger's victims. The whole exercise is fascinating, if vaguely unsatisfying. Read full review
63
Slant MagazineTomas HachardJun 25, 2014
It seems too enamored with the seductive notion of an honorable criminal, too ready to take Bulger's justifications as actual indications of his relative innocence. Read full review
60
New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierJun 26, 2014
Filled with horrific but colorful anecdotes, director Joe Berlinger’s incisive look at the mobster life of Boston career criminal and FBI informant “Whitey” Bulger is essential viewing for fans of lurid, true underworld tales. Read full review
60
The DissolveMike D'AngeloJun 24, 2014
It’s a compelling story. Trouble is, it isn’t a terribly visual story, and this documentary doesn’t serve it nearly as well as a book or lengthy article would. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeJun 26, 2014
Unfocused, overly long documentary raises provocative questions. Read full review
40
The GuardianLeslie FelperinOct 25, 2015
Dense thickets of information, told via rostrum-shot photos and documents plus angry mob’s worth of witnesses, become a grind after a while, as does the trite guitar-led mystery music. Read full review
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