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DETENTION (2012)Movie Reviews
Horror comedy about high school seniors racing against time to stop a slasher killer who has invaded their school. Cast:Josh Hutcherson, Shanley Caswell, Spencer Locke, Aaron David JohnsonDirector:Joseph KahnRelease Date:April 13, 2012DVD Release:July 31, 2012From:IDP DistributionRating:RLength:1 hr 28 min
Detention (2012) played in key cities to fair reviews. Reviews were mixed. • Connie Ogle wrote in the Miami Herald, "There's something to admire about the in-your-face comic anarchy... [but] somebody forgot that a film needs a streamlined story to make visual chaos palatable." • And John Hartl wrote in the Seattle Times, "...suggests an evening of determined, incoherent channel-hopping..." More Reviews Below...
Detention (2012) has not been reviewed by Broad National Press
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (9 Reviews)
Nicolas Rapold, New York Times: FAIR "...horror fans will probably grow impatient with the unevenly executed 'Scream'-style self-awareness... Mr. Kahn ultimately loses control of his referential plate-spinning..."(See all of Nicolas Rapold's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 278 words, 04/13/12
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Some viewers will be understandably put off by its aggressive lack of focus... [but] ultimately the originality trumps the obnoxiousness."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 222 words, 04/13/12
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: POOR "Exhausting before its first few minutes of whip-pans, smash cuts, coarsely self-referential jokes and on-screen text visuals is over... a patience-trying exercise..."(See all of Robert Abele's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 195 words, 04/13/12
Farran Smith Nehme, New York Post: WEAK(cg) "...another sardonic look at the hell of the American high school... satirizing high school is about as fresh and engaging as satirizing John Quincy Adams."(See all of Farran Smith Nehme's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 232 words, 04/13/12
Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine: VERY GOOD "...like 'The Breakfast Club' meets 'Donnie Darko.' Meets 'Prom Night.' Meets 'Back to the Future'.... seems expressly designed for cult status and is certain to achieve it."(See all of Bilge Ebiri's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 675 words, 04/13/12
Richard Roeper, Chicago Sun-Times: WEAK(cg) "What's that? Oh, yes, there are indeed actors in this movie... It's all exceedingly wry and excessively sarcastic -- and much more exhausting than entertaining."(See all of Richard Roeper's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 709 words, 04/13/12
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: POOR "...combines the bravura mash-up showmanship and Wikipedic '90s pop-culture savvy of a Girl Talk album with the frivolous, non sequitur wit of Family Guy."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 211 words, 04/11/12
Peter Howell, Toronto Star: MODERATE(cg) "Neither good enough to impress as a meta mashup of horror and comedy, nor bad enough to hoot and throw popcorn at, it slides into a gray area of unfocused ideas..."(See all of Peter Howell's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 550 words, 04/27/12
KEY CITIES (4 Reviews)
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...all sugar and smirks and OMGs... Yet, for a disarming stretch, whatever director/co-writer Joseph Kahn is trying to get out of his system really gets into ours."(See all of Wesley Morris's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 407 words, 04/13/12
Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle: MODERATE(cg) "...a nonstop assault of stimulation... There will be young moviegoers who proclaim this genius, and more stodgy audience members who find it torturous."(See all of Peter Hartlaub's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 192 words, 04/13/12
John Hartl, Seattle Times: POOR(cg) "...suggests an evening of determined, incoherent channel-hopping -- with the help of a remote control that's apparently stuck on 'random.' "(See all of John Hartl's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 04/13/12
Connie Ogle, Miami Herald: MODERATE(cg) "There's something to admire about the in-your-face comic anarchy... [but] somebody forgot that a film needs a streamlined story to make visual chaos palatable."(See all of Connie Ogle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 427 words, 04/13/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (5 Reviews)
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: POOR "...combines the bravura mash-up showmanship and Wikipedic '90s pop-culture savvy of a Girl Talk album with the frivolous, non sequitur wit of Family Guy."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 211 words, 04/11/12
Nathan Rabin, AV Club: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...ballsy, audacious, and uncompromising, but the overall effect of Kahn's Hellzapoppin-meets-Twitter aesthetic is exhausting rather than energizing."(See all of Nathan Rabin's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 334 words, 04/12/12
Justine Elias, Slant: VERY GOOD(cg) "For gorehounds lured in by the poster and trailer, this will be disappointingly un-gorey. But for pop-culture pilgrims intent on discovering an underground prize, look no further."(See all of Justine Elias's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 656 words, 04/08/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (2 Reviews)
Nicolas Rapold, New York Times: FAIR "...horror fans will probably grow impatient with the unevenly executed 'Scream'-style self-awareness... Mr. Kahn ultimately loses control of his referential plate-spinning..."(See all of Nicolas Rapold's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 278 words, 04/13/12
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: POOR "Exhausting before its first few minutes of whip-pans, smash cuts, coarsely self-referential jokes and on-screen text visuals is over... a patience-trying exercise..."(See all of Robert Abele's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 195 words, 04/13/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Andrew Barker, Daily Variety: WEAK "...seems to expect its audience to actually keep track of its poorly balanced blitz of subplots.... The average viewer can only chuckle uncomprehendingly for so long."(See all of Andrew Barker's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 541 words, 04/01/11
John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter: GOOD "...moves at an absurd pace and dares anyone above 25 to keep up, yet the stream of genre-hopping jokes and sight gags makes the movie an entertaining ride."(See all of John DeFore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 576 words, 03/18/11
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: POOR "Exhausting before its first few minutes of whip-pans, smash cuts, coarsely self-referential jokes and on-screen text visuals is over... a patience-trying exercise..."(See all of Robert Abele's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 195 words, 04/13/12
Nicolas Rapold, New York Times: FAIR "...horror fans will probably grow impatient with the unevenly executed 'Scream'-style self-awareness... Mr. Kahn ultimately loses control of his referential plate-spinning..."(See all of Nicolas Rapold's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 278 words, 04/13/12
25.5 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
Detention (2012)'s reviews are separated by an average 25.5 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.
Detention (2012) (18 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:Detention (2012)'s reviews cover 17.4% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 6,787 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 377 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 21 Days Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
Detention (2012)'s reviews on average broke 21 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 Detention (2012)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
Detention (2012) (18 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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