Season #: 2, 1
Metascore
48

Mixed or average reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 22
  2. Negative: 2 out of 22
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Critic Reviews

  1. Reviewed by: Glenn Garvin
    Sep 14, 2021
    80
    In short, you've seen American Rust so many times you can recite most of the lines before they're spoken. And yet… and yet… there's just too much talent stacked up in the cast of American Rust to turn away from it.
  2. Reviewed by: Ben Travers
    Sep 13, 2021
    67
    “American Rust” could stand to clarify its thoughts beyond authenticity, just as it could certainly seek answers with a little more urgency. But there’s something admirable about its measured, deliberate pace.
  3. Reviewed by: Richard Roeper
    Sep 10, 2021
    63
    There are times when “American Rust” gets things just right. ... Too often, though, we’re mired in wheel-spinning storylines. The great Canadian poet Neil Young once told us rust never sleeps, but “American Rust” takes too many naps.
User Score
6.7

Generally favorable reviews- based on 7 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 7
  2. Negative: 1 out of 7
  1. Sep 14, 2021
    10
    This brooding, family-oriented crime drama is full of complicated characters trying to make the right choices in a world where the goodThis brooding, family-oriented crime drama is full of complicated characters trying to make the right choices in a world where the good options have dried up. For those of us watching in foreign lands, this isn't a retread of shows we've seen before, which seems to be the main criticism from US viewers. Buell is a grim place, and yet there's a stark beauty in watching these ground down folk strive to make something for themselves while being pulled down by the tide of hopelessness that is drowning this town. Perhaps this story is too real for some, and viewers wonder what opportunity American Rust has to present a positive outcome - can these characters shake the rust off their lives and begin to live again? In a post-2020 world, where we are all trying to put ourselves back together, this is a story that is worth telling -- an unflinching examination of a search for the smallest bit of light in a very dark place. Full Review »