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BEGINNERSMovie Reviews
Comedy drama about a man contending with his relationship to his 75 year-old father, who simultaneously comes out of the closet and gets diagnosed with terminal cancer. Cast:Ewan McGregor, Mélanie Laurent, Christopher Plummer, Goran VisnjicDirector:Mike MillsRelease Date:June 3, 2011DVD Release:November 15, 2011From:Focus FeaturesRating:RLength:1 hr 44 min
Beginners played in key cities to very good reviews. • Shawn Levy wrote in the Portland Oregonian, "Mike Mills has crafted a meditation on a huge chunk of life, and he and his cast have made a moving and lovely thing of it." • And Mary Pols wrote in Time, "McGregor and Plummer are both divine.... There is a beautiful wisdom in Plummer's performance. Award season pundits: it is early yet, but take note." More Reviews Below...
Alynda Wheat, People: VERY GOOD(cg) "Plummer and McGregor are beautifully bittersweet as father and son, one finally living, the other still figuring out what that means."(See all of Alynda Wheat's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 98 words, 06/02/11
Mary Pols, Time: EXCELLENT "McGregor and Plummer are both divine.... There is a beautiful wisdom in Plummer's performance. Award season pundits: it is early yet, but take note."(See all of Mary Pols's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 693 words, 06/03/11
Christy Lemire, Associated Press: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...writer-director Mike Mills finds just the right tone every time.... Mills based the story on his own life... but 'Beginners' never feels self-indulgent."(See all of Christy Lemire's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 650 words, 06/02/11
Thelma Adams, Us Weekly: VERY GOOD(cg) "Plummer delights as the late-blooming parent embracing a gay lifestyle, while Melanie Laurent charms... the father-son dynamic makes this a touching drama."(See all of Thelma Adams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 58 words, 06/02/11
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: VERY GOOD(cg) "...touchingly personal and altogether extraordinary... McGregor goes bone-deep in a performance of shining subtlety.... a never-better Plummer is simply stupendous..."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 274 words, 06/10/11
Claudia Puig, USA Today: OUTSTANDING(cg) "It's rare that the trajectories of love and yearning are portrayed in all their complexity on screen. 'Beginners' is that uncommon movie.... At once personal and universal..."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 388 words, 06/03/11
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a hopeful fable with deep optimism and a cheerful style that kids itself. Like many dogs, it shrugs off setbacks and keeps hoping it can go outside and play."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 751 words, 06/10/11
Kat Murphy, MSN Movies: MODERATE(cg) "Folks will either embrace the 'real' or recoil from the reek of indie twee.... A strung-together series of vignettes, montages and threadbare French New Wave tropes..."(See all of Kat Murphy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 785 words, 05/31/11
James Berardinelli, Reel Views: VERY GOOD(cg) "...has many of the qualities that appeal to lovers of character-based dramas, with the narrative working to enhance the personality of the protagonist..."(See all of James Berardinelli's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 692 words, 06/15/11
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (13 Reviews)
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: GOOD "...feels so hermetically perfect you may long for some air to blow, stir and even mess up the precious moments. Even so, the movie's attractions are undeniable."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 947 words, 06/03/11
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: EXCELLENT(cg) "...filled with crises of identity, but underneath it all is a beautifully humane, sweet and intelligent movie that knows exactly what it is at every moment."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 493 words, 06/03/11
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: VERY GOOD "...the empathy you feel for the characters and their crises could turn syrupy or maudlin. Instead, they become an amusing and introspective pleasure..."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 747 words, 06/03/11
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a hopeful fable with deep optimism and a cheerful style that kids itself. Like many dogs, it shrugs off setbacks and keeps hoping it can go outside and play."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 751 words, 06/10/11
Karina Longworth, Village Voice: EXCELLENT "I went in skeptical, and was fully won over.... its stylistic quirk is counterbalanced by director Mike Mills's highly observant feel for how real people behave."(See all of Karina Longworth's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 140 words, 09/22/10
Peter Howell, Toronto Star: VERY GOOD(cg) "...an affecting film by Mike Mills that makes a virtue of its own awkwardness.... The characters become more endearing the more we learn about their foibles."(See all of Peter Howell's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 701 words, 06/17/11
Rick Groen, Toronto Globe & Mail: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...clever insight vies with misty-eyed sentimentality, honesty with artifice, real humour with bogus gravity, the genuinely affecting with the merely quirky.... frustrating..."(See all of Rick Groen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 656 words, 06/17/11
Rob Nelson, LA Weekly: GOOD "...has no shortage of the adorable.... might sound insufferable, but it isn't -- or at least not completely.... has way too many quirks for its own good, but it works..."(See all of Rob Nelson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 239 words, 06/02/11
Susan G. Cole, Toronto Now: EXCELLENT(cg) "Ewan McGregor and Mélanie Laurent are terrific, but the real marvel here is Christopher Plummer, who plunges gleefully into the role of gay rogue."(See all of Susan G. Cole's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 164 words, 06/16/11
KEY CITIES (13 Reviews)
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...tender, sharply observed.... In mining his own life for inspiration, Mills has created an exuberant, infectious testament to the power of letting go and diving in."(See all of Ann Hornaday's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 650 words, 06/10/11
Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a movie about untangling roots in order to grow.... nicely balances the woeful with the whimsical by pairing McEwan's rueful performance with Plummer's raucous one."(See all of Carrie Rickey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 519 words, 06/17/11
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a melancholy exploration of love, loss and discovering one's emotional availability or lack of it.... warm and revealing and bittersweet, if a trifle all over the place..."(See all of Roger Moore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 509 words, 07/01/11
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...gentle, playful, creative and ultimately happy - though it's a tricky journey.... Ewan McGregor, Mélanie Laurent and Christopher Plummer are tremendous."(See all of Bill Goodykoontz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 551 words, 06/24/11
Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger: MODERATE(cg) "...all the gimmicks in the storytelling -- did I mention the dog who talks in subtitles? -- can't camouflage the fact that the story itself was never quite worked out."(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 482 words, 06/03/11
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: VERY GOOD(cg) "I don't know how he does it... It's nothing overt, just some internal shift, but if you saw only 10 seconds of Plummer in this film, you would know he was playing a gay man."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 431 words, 06/10/11
Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...wistful, wonderful... it'll make you laugh, it'll make you cry (well, me anyway) and, by its end, you'll feel as if you've learned something."(See all of Moira Macdonald's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 402 words, 06/10/11
Shawn Levy, Portland Oregonian: OUTSTANDING(cg) "Writer/director Mike Mills has crafted a meditation on a huge chunk of life, and he and his cast have made a moving and lovely thing of it."(See all of Shawn Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 406 words, 06/10/11
Calvin Wilson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...a lovably quirky comedy-drama with a rhythm all its own.... Mike Mills keeps things sharp and smart.... a strange and beautiful film."(See all of Calvin Wilson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 328 words, 06/24/11
Karina Longworth, Village Voice: EXCELLENT "I went in skeptical, and was fully won over.... its stylistic quirk is counterbalanced by director Mike Mills's highly observant feel for how real people behave."(See all of Karina Longworth's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 140 words, 09/22/10
Katey Rich, Cinema Blend: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...lovely to watch, but in the end a little too easy and shallow. Christopher Plummer's performance earns the price of admission, but just barely."(See all of Katey Rich's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 473 words, 06/03/11
Rob Nelson, LA Weekly: GOOD "...has no shortage of the adorable.... might sound insufferable, but it isn't -- or at least not completely.... has way too many quirks for its own good, but it works..."(See all of Rob Nelson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 239 words, 06/02/11
Scott Tobias, AV Club: EXCELLENT(cg) "...the authentic, enormously affecting story of director Mike Mills' father, whose late-life revelation of his sexual orientation had profound ramifications for his son's life, too."(See all of Scott Tobias's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 393 words, 06/02/11
Diego Costa, Slant: OUTSTANDING(cg) "The film understands its subject(s) as contradicting and broken, and its lovers not as complements for each other, but rough-surfaced supplements.... the real thing."(See all of Diego Costa's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 749 words, 05/31/11
Susan G. Cole, Toronto Now: EXCELLENT(cg) "Ewan McGregor and Mélanie Laurent are terrific, but the real marvel here is Christopher Plummer, who plunges gleefully into the role of gay rogue."(See all of Susan G. Cole's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 164 words, 06/16/11
HIGHBROW PRESS (4 Reviews)
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: GOOD "...almost unmanageably ambitious.... Yet the film's special mixture of sadness, comedy and hope sneaks up on you and stays in your memory."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 289 words, 06/03/11
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: GOOD "...feels so hermetically perfect you may long for some air to blow, stir and even mess up the precious moments. Even so, the movie's attractions are undeniable."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 947 words, 06/03/11
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: VERY GOOD "...the empathy you feel for the characters and their crises could turn syrupy or maudlin. Instead, they become an amusing and introspective pleasure..."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 747 words, 06/03/11
Andrew O'Hehir, Salon: OUTSTANDING "...ranks among the most affectionate and sensitive portraits of homosexuality ever crafted by a straight person.... subtle and beautifully crafted..."(See all of Andrew O'Hehir's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,438 words, 06/02/11
MOVIE INDUSTRY (6 Reviews)
Peter Debruge, Daily Variety: EXCELLENT "...deeply poignant and disarmingly personal... Rarely do you find such self-plunging material beyond the realm of documentary or far-fringe museum fare..."(See all of Peter Debruge's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 837 words, 09/12/10
Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter: VERY GOOD "A smart screenplay and captivating visual devices deliver genuine emotions... a tender, funny-sad journey into the messiness that is love."(See all of Kirk Honeycutt's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 719 words, 10/15/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: VERY GOOD "...the empathy you feel for the characters and their crises could turn syrupy or maudlin. Instead, they become an amusing and introspective pleasure..."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 747 words, 06/03/11
Jeff Farr, Cinema 24/7: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...captures the times and waxes philosophical while entertaining us with a simple but honest love story.... genuinely funny throughout."(See all of Jeff Farr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 697 words, 06/10/11
Manohla Dargis, New York Times: GOOD "...feels so hermetically perfect you may long for some air to blow, stir and even mess up the precious moments. Even so, the movie's attractions are undeniable."(See all of Manohla Dargis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 947 words, 06/03/11
Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: GOOD "...almost unmanageably ambitious.... Yet the film's special mixture of sadness, comedy and hope sneaks up on you and stays in your memory."(See all of Joe Morgenstern's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 289 words, 06/03/11
15.5 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Beginners's reviews are separated by an average 15.5 percentage points. The norm for this measure is 18.4 percentage points. Less than 18.4 indicates more consistent reviews; greater than 18.4 indicates more mixed reviews. In the chart below, each dot represents a review, with the dots at the top more positive than the dots at the bottom. From left to right, the dots represent reviews in big, bigger and biggest publications. Roll over each dot for more detail.
Beginners (45 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Beginners's reviews cover 93.8% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 24,431 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 543 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 3 Days Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Beginners's reviews on average broke 3 days before opening. Norm for this measure is 1.2 hours before. The chart below shows reviews on opening day and the days before and after opening; the left side is earlier and the right side is later. The red bars extending above the horizontal mid-line represent more positive reviews, and the red bars extending below represent more negative reviews. The white space/red bar in the middle is Beginners's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
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