Dear Reader: Update, Movie Review Intelligence will
continue publishing this website through June (more...)
Search a Movie:
THE MOTH DIARIESMovie Reviews
Horror story about a young girl who falls under the spell of a mysterious new student at an elite boarding school. Cast:Lily Cole, Sarah Gadon, Sarah Bolger, Judy ParfittDirector:Mary HarronRelease Date:April 20, 2012DVD Release:August 28, 2012From:IFCRating:RLength:1 hr 22 min
The Moth Diaries played in limited release to fair reviews. • Phil Brown wrote in Toronto Now, "...part bubble-gum vampire romp, part study of a disturbed teen mind.... Sadly, Mary Harron's characteristic dark humour isn't present here..." • And Kat Murphy wrote for MSN Movies, "...never really steams up the screen with any psychosexual hijinks..." More Reviews Below...
The Moth Diaries Positive Reviews (18 Reviews, reviews below)
Richard Corliss, Time: WEAK "...includes just enough glimpses of exposed flesh and violent death to earn the film an R rating, not enough to weave an entrancing spell.... a pallid shocker..."(See all of Richard Corliss's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 584 words, 04/20/12
Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: MODERATE(cg) "...torpid... Sarah Bolger plays a dull Everygirl trying to get through teen gloom. Inexpressive British model Lily Cole stares at a vampiric new classmate."(See all of Lisa Schwarzbaum's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 75 words, 04/13/12
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Writer/director Mary Harron keeps the film brisling with suspense and erotic tension, erring only by intellectualizing the action when we need to feel the heat."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 328 words, 04/13/12
Kat Murphy, MSN Movies: WEAK(cg) "...never really steams up the screen with any psychosexual hijinks, and it falls way short of successfully mining vampirism as fertile metaphor for Sapphic love..."(See all of Kat Murphy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 722 words, 04/20/12
we have an app for when you're out and about
get our iPhone app... or get our mobile web app...
movie review intelligence
NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (8 Reviews)
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...a Gothic stew of satisfying kinkiness if unsatisfying resolution.... the film's narrative frailties are offset by impeccable performances and a consistently eerie tone..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 243 words, 04/20/12
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: POOR(cg) "...one big giveaway that the new kid is different is all the moths she has in her dorm room -- perhaps they're coming from the been-there-bit-that script?"(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 104 words, 04/20/12
Bilge Ebiri, New York Magazine: VERY GOOD "Those looking to jump out of their seats or get swept away in supernatural passions may have a hard time with it, but there's a ruthless precision to this film..."(See all of Bilge Ebiri's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 473 words, 04/20/12
Linda Barnard, Toronto Star: MODERATE(cg) "While there's plenty of promise, there's no payoff... Harron seems to be holding back, with the exception of one impactful fantasy scene where it literally rains blood."(See all of Linda Barnard's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 527 words, 04/05/12
Nick Schager, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "Lesbian desires, fears of mortality, and adolescent jealousies... all handled as bluntly as the unintentionally corny black-and-white flashbacks and gauzy dream sequences."(See all of Nick Schager's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 201 words, 04/18/12
Rick Groen, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE(cg) "...somewhere in the listless middle, with the only exits both blocked - the low one to escapist entertainment, and the high one to engaged art."(See all of Rick Groen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 620 words, 04/06/12
Phil Brown, Toronto Now: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...part bubble-gum vampire romp, part study of a disturbed teen mind.... Sadly, Mary Harron's characteristic dark humour isn't present here..."(See all of Phil Brown's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 160 words, 04/05/12
KEY CITIES (1 Review)
Peter Hartlaub, San Francisco Chronicle: POOR(cg) "...way too serious for its own good. The best vampire movies are some combination of sexy, scary or campy. This one is 100 percent earnest..."(See all of Peter Hartlaub's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 201 words, 08/10/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (6 Reviews)
Nick Schager, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "Lesbian desires, fears of mortality, and adolescent jealousies... all handled as bluntly as the unintentionally corny black-and-white flashbacks and gauzy dream sequences."(See all of Nick Schager's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 201 words, 04/18/12
Scott Tobias, AV Club: WEAK(cg) "...deals with the intense emotions of girls in the blush of adolescence, but writer/director Mary Harron, perhaps wary of exploitation, pours cold water over them."(See all of Scott Tobias's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 400 words, 04/19/12
Stephanie Zacharek, Movieline: VERY GOOD(cg) "...offers glancing pleasures of the atmospheric kind - the impact is the equivalent of a filmy cobweb brushing against your cheek. It tickles more than it bites."(See all of Stephanie Zacharek's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 513 words, 04/19/12
Andrew Schenker, Slant: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...like many a bloodsucker tale, the sexuality is largely repressed, finding its expression in -- real or imagined -- vampiric activity."(See all of Andrew Schenker's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 547 words, 04/13/12
Phil Brown, Toronto Now: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...part bubble-gum vampire romp, part study of a disturbed teen mind.... Sadly, Mary Harron's characteristic dark humour isn't present here..."(See all of Phil Brown's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 160 words, 04/05/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (1 Review)
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...a Gothic stew of satisfying kinkiness if unsatisfying resolution.... the film's narrative frailties are offset by impeccable performances and a consistently eerie tone..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 243 words, 04/20/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (3 Reviews)
Justin Chang, Daily Variety: MODERATE "The body count runs high at Brangwyn boarding school, but tension, surprise and viewer interest are the real casualties in 'The Moth Diaries.' "(See all of Justin Chang's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 754 words, 09/06/11
Neil Young, Hollywood Reporter: POOR "Suspenseless, uninvolving and underdeveloped... about as scary and menacing as the harmless lepidoptera in the film's title."(See all of Neil Young's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 643 words, 09/06/11
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...a Gothic stew of satisfying kinkiness if unsatisfying resolution.... the film's narrative frailties are offset by impeccable performances and a consistently eerie tone..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 243 words, 04/20/12
18.6 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Moth Diaries's reviews are separated by an average 18.6 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 Moth Diaries (18 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Moth Diaries's reviews cover 38.3% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 7,362 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 409 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 7 Days Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Moth Diaries's reviews on average broke 7 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 The Moth Diaries's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Moth Diaries (18 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
Mobile Web App version 1.2 shows a list of all current movies and review information. You can click through to the cast, director, synopsis, release date and rating on page two, plus individual reviews on page three. The information is updated on a live/real-time basis. You can also search our database of films. Designed for when you're on the move and want the latest info, this app will work on any mobile web browser. From your mobile device -- only from a mobile device -- open our Mobile Web App here...
