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MACGRUBERMovie Reviews
Action comedy about the adventures of MacGruber, a comedic take on the 1980s TV character MacGyver. Cast:Will Forte, Ryan Phillippe, Kristen Wiig, Val Kilmer, Powers BootheDirector:Jorma TacconeRelease Date:May 21, 2010DVD Release:September 7, 2010From:UniversalRating:RLength:1 hr 30 min
MacGruber played to weak reviews. Reviews were mixed. • Rob Salem wrote in the Toronto Star, "...made up of lame repetitive gags and a lot of stuff we've seen done before and better in other movies, particularly 'Zoolander,' 'Austin Powers' and 'Hot Shots! Part Deux.' " • And Ty Burr wrote in the Boston Globe, "...a lot better than it should be. That still doesn't mean it's all that great." More Reviews Below...
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: FAIR(cg) "...sometimes all a moviegoer wants is to be entertained by the sight of a guy proudly displaying a stalk of celery inserted between his naked butt cheeks..."(See all of Lisa Schwarzbaum's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 288 words, 05/28/10
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: VERY GOOD(cg) "Maybe watching Forte run around with a stalk of celery up his ass isn't your idea of fun. So be it.... I'd call it classic MacGruber."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 383 words, 05/21/10
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (10 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: POOR "The law of diminishing returns is enforced so stringently that the movie succeeds not only in negating its own comedy, but its very being."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 616 words, 05/22/10
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: POOR(cg) "To call 'MacGruber' a total bomb is a bit much, but this comedy-action flick sure feels like it was put together with gum, shoelaces and a couple of sticky Twizzlers."(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 486 words, 05/21/10
Kyle Smith, New York Post: POOR(cg) "...even wastes the reason for its existence -- the readily spoofable MacGyver trademark of manufacturing lifesaving gizmos out of household items."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 567 words, 05/21/10
Rob Salem, Toronto Star: POOR(cg) "...made up of lame repetitive gags and a lot of stuff we've seen done before and better in other movies, particularly 'Zoolander,' 'Austin Powers' and 'Hot Shots! Part Deux.' "(See all of Rob Salem's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 449 words, 05/21/10
Karina Longworth, Village Voice/LA Weekly: MODERATE "...has an unusual tone for a contemporary comedy.... much of its comedy stems from the deadpan re-creation of an era's worth of blockbuster tropes."(See all of Karina Longworth's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 773 words, 05/19/10
Ruth McCann, Washington Post: WEAK(cg) "...seems content to simply point at its hero, yell 'What a schmuck!' and leave it at that.... Like a kid banging pots together in a kitchen, it's a little bit funny, until it's not."(See all of Ruth McCann's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 439 words, 05/22/10
Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...an affectionate and not altogether slipshod nod to '80s-era Schwarzenegger, Stallone, and Willis vehicles."(See all of Steven Rea's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 475 words, 05/22/10
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: MODERATE(cg) "...manages to be nostalgic and profane in equal measures, a movie that's retro and yet retro-fitted to suit the new cutting edge in screen farce."(See all of Roger Moore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 562 words, 05/21/10
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: MODERATE(cg) "...a lot better than it should be. That still doesn't mean it's all that great.... hits about half its intended marks, a fairly high average for one of these spinoffs."(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 594 words, 05/21/10
Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times: MODERATE(cg) "...a few gags are briefly hilarious... The nicest thing to say about 'MacGruber' is that it's the best 'Saturday Night Live' movie in a decade. It's also the first one..."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 452 words, 05/22/10
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (6 Reviews)
Karina Longworth, Village Voice/LA Weekly: MODERATE "...has an unusual tone for a contemporary comedy.... much of its comedy stems from the deadpan re-creation of an era's worth of blockbuster tropes."(See all of Karina Longworth's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 773 words, 05/19/10
Betsy Sherman, Boston Phoenix: OUTSTANDING(cg) "Peppered with deliberately cringeworthy R-rated banter and boasting a hero eager to degrade himself, 'MacGruber' is sick fun."(See all of Betsy Sherman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 157 words, 05/27/10
Nathan Rabin, AV Club: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...alternates quick bursts of laugh-out-loud funniness with long dry stretches. It isn't exactly good, but for audiences in search of nothing more than a few silly chuckles..."(See all of Nathan Rabin's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 343 words, 05/21/10
Curt Holman, Atlanta Creative Loafing: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Violent, silly and occasionally embarrassing to watch, 'MacGruber's' arsenal of dumb jokes seldom shoots blanks and may be this generation's equivalent to 'Airplane!' "(See all of Curt Holman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 505 words, 05/21/10
HIGHBROW PRESS (2 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: POOR "The law of diminishing returns is enforced so stringently that the movie succeeds not only in negating its own comedy, but its very being."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 616 words, 05/22/10
Joe Leydon, Daily Variety: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...a raunchy, broadly played farce that may amuse - and almost certainly will surprise - even non-fans of the 'Saturday Night Live' sketches that inspired it."(See all of Joe Leydon's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 735 words, 05/21/10
John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter: MODERATE "Utterly disposable but diverting... a jerry-rigged contraption whose rubber-bands-and-baking-soda construction is lucky to work once and then fall apart."(See all of John DeFore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 446 words, 03/16/10
A.O. Scott, New York Times: POOR "The law of diminishing returns is enforced so stringently that the movie succeeds not only in negating its own comedy, but its very being."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 616 words, 05/22/10
26.4 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
MacGruber's reviews are separated by an average 26.4 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.
MacGruber (25 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:MacGruber's reviews cover 35.3% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 12,092 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 484 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 40.0 Hours After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
MacGruber's reviews on average broke 40.0 hours after 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 MacGruber's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
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