Running with Beto
  • Network: HBO
  • Series Premiere Date: May 28, 2019
Metascore
71

Generally favorable reviews - based on 7 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 7
  3. Negative: 0 out of 7

Critic Reviews

  1. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: John DeFore
    Mar 11, 2019
    80
    Beto may not sway viewers who think the rising star has a long way to go before deserving a position higher than the Senate, but it's sure to leave lefties eager for the next chapter in his career.
  2. Variety
    Reviewed by: Peter Debruge
    Mar 11, 2019
    80
    "You already know how it’s gonna end." And yet, Modigliani’s film doesn’t reflect a defeat. ... If it’s an optimistic beginning you’re after, Running With Beto makes for a fine start.
  3. IndieWire
    Reviewed by: Eric Kohn
    Mar 11, 2019
    75
    This sort of agitprop victory lap has its limitations, and Modigliani’s proficient fly-on-the-wall approach lacks the edge of the greatest campaign documentaries, but much of the movie’s gentler qualities reflect the tenor of O’Rourke’s upbeat campaign itself. Viewed on its own terms, Running With Beto consolidates the feel-good trajectory of O’Rourke’s run into an engaging package that showcases his galvanizing impact up close.
  5. The Atlantic
    Reviewed by: Megan Garber
    May 28, 2019
    70
    It often has the feel of an infomercial whose miracle product is a lanky resident of El Paso. This, too, is unsurprising. What is striking, though, is the low-stakes nature of the miracle.
  6. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: Jen Chaney
    May 24, 2019
    70
    Running With Beto captures how much enthusiasm has been generated by those frustrated by both President Trump and Republican decision-making at various levels of government. Yet it also reflects how difficult it remains, especially in battleground states, to sway people whose thinking on various issues has been hardened into cement.