Beyonce: Life Is But a Dream
HBO | Release Date: February 16, 2013
CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
57
METASCORE
Mixed or average reviews based on 14 Critic Reviews
Positive:
6
Mixed:
6
Negative:
2

Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
83
Entertainment WeeklyKen TuckerFeb 8, 2013
Season 1 Review: What gives this film grit are the visual displays of her work ethic and her fierce determination to "bring R&B music back" to the center of current pop music, to "forget being cool" and reveal naked passion. [15 Feb 2013, p.60]
75
Uncle BarkyEd BarkFeb 13, 2013
Season 1 Review: Life Is But A Dream in reality doesn't give all that much. Still, it's a watchable film for those who just can't get enough of a pop music jewel to behold who's still just 31 and likely not even in her prime yet. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesGerrick D. KennedyFeb 15, 2013
Season 1 Review: Ultimately, Life Is but a Dream remains a victory for her fans. Casual viewers will most likely glean the same sense of the superstar's life as one might from a magazine feature. But for serious fans of the fiercely private superstar, this remains a window into her life. Read full review
67
NewsdayGlenn GamboaFeb 14, 2013
Season 1 Review: Sure, it's a glossy, well-produced infomercial filled with powerful live performances, but it feels designed to make us want to buy more Beyoncé stuff. Read full review
63
New York PostLinda StasiFeb 15, 2013
Season 1 Review: Life Is But A Dream is a vanity project that could have been a helluva film--if she had given up control and let the story tell itself. Read full review
63
People WeeklyTom GliattoFeb 8, 2013
Season 1 Review: A gauzy, pretty documentary. [18 Feb 2013, p.43]
60
SalonWilla PaskinFeb 13, 2013
Season 1 Review: The best parts of Life Is But a Dream are not the confessionals, but watching Beyoncé become Beyoncé. It’s a transformation we see only bits of.... But mostly, there’s no sweat. We hear about her angst, and then we see the finished product. Read full review
50
Denver PostJoanne OstrowFeb 14, 2013
Season 1 Review: The yin and yang of stardom are on display here: The footage from her in concert is breathtaking. The cliches from her interviews are cringe-inducing. Read full review
50
RedEyeCurt WagnerFeb 14, 2013
Season 1 Review: The HBO special comes off more as another managed attempt to forge the legend of Queen B. Read full review
50
San Francisco ChronicleDavid WiegandFeb 13, 2013
Season 1 Review: Life Is But a Dream, co-directed by Ed Burke and billed by HBO as "an intimate, revealing documentary," isn't really, but there are enough moments that pass for authenticity to make it a benignly informative glimpse into a rarefied existence. Read full review
50
The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyFeb 8, 2013
Season 1 Review: Rather than a self-portrait, this is a scrupulously processed diptych. Read full review
40
VarietyBrian LowryFeb 14, 2013
Season 1 Review: Life Is But a Dream simply plays like a video diary, a less-salacious version of the brand of self-confessional "celeb-reality" shows overpopulating cable TV, albeit with lower-octane stars. Read full review
30
Boston GlobeMatthew GilbertFeb 15, 2013
Season 1 Review: It’s an oddly unnecessary piece of work, a vanity production from top to bottom with very little that feels genuinely candid. Read full review
30
The New York TimesAlessandra StanleyFeb 14, 2013
Season 1 Review: Beyoncé: Life Is but a Dream is as contrived as “Madonna: Truth or Dare,” but probably for good reason it is neither daring nor entirely truthful. Read full review
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