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THE BEST EXOTIC MARIGOLD HOTELMovie Reviews
Comedy drama about a group of British retirees who move to India, where they learn to let go of the past and embrace their new environment. Cast:Judi Dench, Bill Nighy, Dev Patel, Maggie Smith, Tom WilkinsonDirector:John MaddenRelease Date:May 4, 2012DVD Release:September 18, 2012From:20th Century FoxRating:PG-13Length:1 hr 58 min
SEPTEMBER 18, 2012
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Good (Not Great) Reviews
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel played to good not great reviews. • Emanuel Levy wrote for Cinema 24/7, "...uneven, but it contains sufficient sharp observations and some witty lines..." • And Keith Phipps wrote for the AV Club, "It's familiar in the extreme, but manages some sleepytime pleasures in the process, thanks largely to an overqualified cast." More Reviews Below...
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel Positive Reviews (48 Reviews, reviews below)
Alynda Wheat, People: MODERATE(cg) "The cast is stuffed with world-class actors who elevate the thin material, but just barely. Still, the footage is lush, and India gets fair treatment."(See all of Alynda Wheat's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 118 words, 05/03/12
Mary Pols, Time: VERY GOOD "There are brutal truths about the declining years... but they are amply padded with comedy and cheery messages about acceptance; this is no bitter pill to swallow."(See all of Mary Pols's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 983 words, 05/04/12
Christy Lemire, Associated Press: MODERATE(cg) "...old-fashioned, safe and resistant to stray from its comfort zone -- like visiting a foreign country and only eating the foods you already know you like."(See all of Christy Lemire's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 541 words, 05/03/12
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: GOOD(cg) "...there's something comfortable -- and comforting -- about all this.... the movie is as reliable as a tea bag..... it achieves what it sets out to do..."(See all of Lisa Schwarzbaum's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 724 words, 05/04/12
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...this is a cast that never makes a false move... it's a shame that in the end John Madden can't keep the tear-jerking from drowning this delicate cinematic flower."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 303 words, 04/27/12
Claudia Puig, USA Today: VERY GOOD(cg) "The retirees have a few things in common: They are slightly lost souls in search of reinvention and a rewarding life in their sunset years."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 527 words, 05/04/12
Roger Ebert, RogerEbert.com: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...there's a fair amount of humanity in the screenplay.... Events move along so engagingly that they sneak up on a few surprisingly touching developments..."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 821 words, 05/04/12
Glenn Kenny, MSN Movies: WEAK(cg) "...doling out dollops of the most conventional wisdom imaginable along carpe diem and live-and-let-live lines... utterly pat material... tolerable..."(See all of Glenn Kenny's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 604 words, 05/01/12
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: WEAK(cg) "Although the movie is meant to be about challenging one's lifelong assumptions, we can predict the characters' responses as soon as we meet them."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 380 words, 05/04/12
Kyle Smith, New York Post: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...has an overstuffed heart, and the witty script offers lots of gentle laughs.... The movie is moderately cloying, not massively so."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 608 words, 05/04/12
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: VERY GOOD(cg) "...saved by the casting bell... arranges for a tiptop collection of British character women and men to bring out the best in a pleasantly predictable story."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 438 words, 05/04/12
Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...a predictable menu of old regrets and new beginnings in a lush, exotic locale.... Still, there's a bit of timeliness to this particular vintage of British retirees."(See all of Bilge Ebiri's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 563 words, 05/03/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: OUTSTANDING(cg) "...there's a fair amount of humanity in the screenplay.... Events move along so engagingly that they sneak up on a few surprisingly touching developments..."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 821 words, 05/04/12
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: GOOD "...ribald but, of course, never crude... the plot twists are about as venerable as the cast and predictably affecting when performed with such old-hand proficiency."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 221 words, 05/02/12
Linda Barnard, Toronto Star: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Ol Parker's script is larded with pithy one-liners, not all of them original. Some of the gags are so old, they practically have whiskers."(See all of Linda Barnard's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 741 words, 05/04/12
Liam Lacey, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE(cg) "With its stereotypical characters and creaky plot turns, this passage to India feels even longer than its running time."(See all of Liam Lacey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 566 words, 05/04/12
Gary Thompson, Philadelphia Inquirer: VERY GOOD(cg) "It's 'Eat, Pray, Love' for the AARP -- which, in a worst-case scenario, might play like 'Eat, Complain and Continue Eating.' "(See all of Gary Thompson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 439 words, 05/04/12
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: POOR(cg) "The whole banal mess feels as if it was lifted from the platitudinous blog in which Judi Dench's character records her musings."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 279 words, 05/04/12
Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: VERY GOOD(cg) "...like the coming together of a supergroup of classic rockers that never manages to live up to the individual work. Parts of it are catchy, but it doesn't quite rock."(See all of Bill Goodykoontz's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 574 words, 05/04/12
Ty Burr, Boston Globe: MODERATE(cg) "...it's predictable fluff, sometimes pleasantly so, at others times irritatingly... plays like the 'Disoriented Express.' "(See all of Ty Burr's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 562 words, 05/04/12
Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger: VERY GOOD(cg) "Want a story about some pensioned-off, lonely retirees discovering they're not so useless - or loveless - as they think?"(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 568 words, 05/04/12
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: VERY GOOD(cg) "...a rare reminder from movies that the grand emotions are not only for the young and the middle-aged. They're the sweetness and torment of life until the last light goes out."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 653 words, 05/04/12
Marc Mohan, Portland Oregonian: VERY GOOD(cg) "...cinematic comfort food aimed at well-settled audiences looking for a little vicarious, AARP-approved spunk. Not that there's anything wrong with that."(See all of Marc Mohan's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 217 words, 05/11/12
Steve Persall, Tampa Bay Times: EXCELLENT(cg) "...a constant amusement and a nice alternative... let us put in a word for Bill Nighy, one of the most underrated actors alive."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 528 words, 05/03/12
Connie Ogle, Miami Herald: VERY GOOD(cg) "The movie's charms lie in its frank and amusing assessment of age and in its heartening message that life isn't over just because you've hit 65."(See all of Connie Ogle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 499 words, 05/11/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (10 Reviews)
Nick Pinkerton, Village Voice/LA Weekly: GOOD "...ribald but, of course, never crude... the plot twists are about as venerable as the cast and predictably affecting when performed with such old-hand proficiency."(See all of Nick Pinkerton's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 221 words, 05/02/12
Katey Rich, Cinema Blend: VERY GOOD(cg) "...may feel fluffy and breezy until you suddenly realize you're genuinely invested in these characters and their second lease on life."(See all of Katey Rich's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 621 words, 05/02/12
Brett Michel, Boston Phoenix: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...old-fashioned... Filled with Indian (and British) clichés, it is nonetheless a pleasant diversion that doesn't involve special effects or 3D glasses."(See all of Brett Michel's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 147 words, 05/03/12
Alison Willmore, Movieline: VERY GOOD(cg) "...this is not a film about India, it's one about growing old in a terribly British fashion.... the pleasure is in watching the characters on screen realize the fact themselves, to their delight."(See all of Alison Willmore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 741 words, 05/04/12
R. Kurt Osenlund, Slant: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "If the film, directed with middlebrow snuggliness by John Madden, were on the same profound plane as its cast, there may have been something truly unforgettable here."(See all of R. Kurt Osenlund's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 716 words, 05/01/12
MaryAnn Johanson, Flick Filosopher: MODERATE(cg) "...the height of clichéd predictability... director John Madden makes a visual mess of things in places. Still, Wilkinson, Dench, and Nighy are a pleasure to watch, always..."(See all of MaryAnn Johanson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 449 words, 02/29/12
Leslie Felperin, Daily Variety: GOOD "...predictable... boasts a crack cast of seasoned thesps who sock over every wry line and wring maximum emotional resonance from a sometimes clunky script..."(See all of Leslie Felperin's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,007 words, 02/18/12
David Rooney, Hollywood Reporter: VERY GOOD "...captivating... even at its most predictable, the winning characterizations and soulful insights into aging keep the handsome film on a warmly satisfying track."(See all of David Rooney's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,067 words, 02/18/12
14.8 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel's reviews are separated by an average 14.8 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.
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (48 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel's reviews cover 96.7% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 25,540 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 532 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel Coverage, Volume & Length (48 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 40.4 Hours Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel's reviews on average broke 40.4 hours 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 The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (48 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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