Dear Reader: Update, Movie Review Intelligence will
continue publishing this website through June (more...)
Search a Movie:
THE RUM DIARYMovie Reviews
Drama about a New York reporter who travels to Puerto Rico to write for a local paper in 1960 and faces an unexpected moral choice. Cast:Johnny Depp, Aaron Eckhart, Amber Heard, Richard JenkinsDirector:Bruce RobinsonRelease Date:October 28, 2011DVD Release:February 14, 2012From:FilmDistrictRating:RLength:2 hr 0 min
The Rum Diary played to good not great reviews. • Scott Tobias wrote for the AV Club, "...feels loose but lackadaisical — a shaggy-dog story that's mostly shag and little dog." • And Mick LaSalle wrote in the San Francisco Chronicle, "That the movie is leisurely and unconventional is all part of its charm - until it isn't anymore. The movie is a tale of corruption, but then it's not. It's a love story, but no..." More Reviews Below...
The Rum Diary Positive Reviews (47 Reviews, reviews below)
Richard Corliss, Time: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Proudly sodden and sleepy-eyed... plays like a drunken night with the guys as seen by the one teetotaler; it displays the amiability of an alcoholic haze..."(See all of Richard Corliss's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,217 words, 10/28/11
Jake Coyle, Associated Press: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Bruce Robinson doesn't present the cartoonish Thompson we've come to expect. It's a refreshing, grounded view of the writer."(See all of Jake Coyle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 664 words, 10/27/11
Mara Reinstein, Us Weekly: MODERATE(cg) "Only some of Depp's capers engage (like the drunken car chase with angry locals). Otherwise, it's all too easy to gaze at the palm trees and the ocean and daydream."(See all of Mara Reinstein's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 82 words, 10/27/11
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: MODERATE(cg) "We're supposed to be witnessing the birth of a great journalist, but Thompson, as his career went on, got swallowed up by his mystique as an outlaw of excess."(See all of Owen Gleiberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 509 words, 10/28/11
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...isn't classic cinema. But damn if the movie isn't alive to the challenge of capturing the gonzo master in the act of inventing himself."(See all of Peter Travers's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 609 words, 10/28/11
Claudia Puig, USA Today: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Much of the dialogue's offbeat wit seems to come straight from Thompson's book. That distinctive dialogue is the movie's greatest asset."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 483 words, 10/28/11
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Depp has a deep attraction to Hunter Thompson, who he played earlier in 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' (1998). Thompson was apparently good company..."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 881 words, 10/28/11
James Rocchi, MSN Movies: WEAK(cg) "...winds up being the laborious equivalent of a drunkard clumsily retracing dance steps he first made when he was much younger and more alert."(See all of James Rocchi's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 848 words, 10/25/11
get our iPhone app... or get our mobile web app...
movie review intelligence
NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (13 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Connoisseurs of straw hats and cool sunglasses will find much to savor, as will aficionados of guilt-free cigarette smoking and midday boozing. A mild lark..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 867 words, 10/28/11
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Where Thompson gave us skillfully observed substance, Robinson gives us well-crafted veneer.... Still, the film is beautifully rendered."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 770 words, 10/28/11
Kyle Smith, New York Post: MODERATE(cg) "Hunter S. Thompson wrote the book, Johnny Depp stars and Bruce Robinson, who did 'Withnail and I,' directs.... pretty much guaranteed to be a disappointment."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 610 words, 10/28/11
Rafer Guzman, New York Newsday: POOR(cg) "A plotless, pointless mess likely to exasperate even die-hard Thompson fans.... At this rate, Depp may be doing Thompson's memory more harm than good."(See all of Rafer Guzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 325 words, 10/28/11
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Depp has a deep attraction to Hunter Thompson, who he played earlier in 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' (1998). Thompson was apparently good company..."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 881 words, 10/28/11
J. Hoberman, Village Voice/LA Weekly: MODERATE "...what the Brits might call a rum movie -- an oddly inoffensive piece and a personal project for its disconcertingly unengaged star, Johnny Depp."(See all of J. Hoberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 690 words, 10/26/11
Ann Hornaday, Washington Post: MODERATE(cg) "Brimming with Thompson's alcohol-drenched antics, observational wit and gift for the acidly apposite phrase... [but] also suffers from a creakily episodic structure..."(See all of Ann Hornaday's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 656 words, 10/28/11
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...an agreeably drunken stagger through the novel Thompson based on his formative year as a writer -- 1960 -- which he spent drunk..."(See all of Roger Moore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 620 words, 10/28/11
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...gives Johnny Depp the opportunity to play another type of Caribbean drunk.... a colorful travelogue unsure of where it's going."(See all of Colin Covert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 418 words, 10/28/11
Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Depp is fine, and there's an authentic, Third-World grunginess to the island scenes; Richard Jenkins is great, as always..."(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 455 words, 10/28/11
Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: MODERATE(cg) "That the movie is leisurely and unconventional is all part of its charm - until it isn't anymore. The movie is a tale of corruption, but then it's not. It's a love story, but no..."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 662 words, 10/28/11
Soren Andersen, Seattle Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "The picture is all over the map, but Depp's performance is right on target as he captures the troubled spirit of his madman muse."(See all of Soren Andersen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 417 words, 10/28/11
Shawn Levy, Portland Oregonian: EXCELLENT(cg) "...a rare instance of a film living up to the anticipation that its very existence engenders, and you have to be heartened by that."(See all of Shawn Levy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 587 words, 10/28/11
Joe Holleman, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: VERY GOOD(cg) "...one version of the story about how the real Thompson became the famous, public Thompson... solid and entertaining..."(See all of Joe Holleman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 333 words, 10/28/11
Steve Persall, St. Petersburg Times: EXCELLENT(cg) "...a movie of vibrantly decadent parts.... Thompson's fans will embrace its twisted verbal dexterity, romantically imagining the author feverishly pulling strings..."(See all of Steve Persall's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 562 words, 10/27/11
Connie Ogle, Miami Herald: VERY GOOD(cg) "...the whole movie is one big, beautiful, funny, nostalgic blast and a fine, fitting tribute to a writer who relished skewering sacred cows."(See all of Connie Ogle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 499 words, 10/28/11
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (10 Reviews)
J. Hoberman, Village Voice/LA Weekly: MODERATE "...what the Brits might call a rum movie -- an oddly inoffensive piece and a personal project for its disconcertingly unengaged star, Johnny Depp."(See all of J. Hoberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 690 words, 10/26/11
Ann Lewinson, Boston Phoenix: VERY GOOD(cg) "Bruce Robinson has rewritten Thompson's autobiographical novel in the inebriated-buddy image of his 'Withnail and I'; his dialogue is wickedly quotable..."(See all of Ann Lewinson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 156 words, 10/27/11
Scott Tobias, AV Club: GOOD(cg) "...feels loose but lackadaisical -- a shaggy-dog story that's mostly shag and little dog.... too much of 'The Rum Diary' is not just aimless but rudderless..."(See all of Scott Tobias's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 392 words, 10/27/11
Stephanie Zacharek, Movieline: EXCELLENT(cg) "Depp's Kemp looks equally at home zipping around San Juan, dressed in a neat sports jacket and dapper Panama, or crawling his way out of bar-room brawl."(See all of Stephanie Zacharek's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 663 words, 10/27/11
MaryAnn Johanson, Flick Filosopher: MODERATE(cg) "...disappointingly unengaging.... fails to impart any sense of positive, productive defiance.... makes for a lousy tribute to Thompson's fundamental insolence."(See all of MaryAnn Johanson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 337 words, 12/07/11
HIGHBROW PRESS (4 Reviews)
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Connoisseurs of straw hats and cool sunglasses will find much to savor, as will aficionados of guilt-free cigarette smoking and midday boozing. A mild lark..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 867 words, 10/28/11
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Where Thompson gave us skillfully observed substance, Robinson gives us well-crafted veneer.... Still, the film is beautifully rendered."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 770 words, 10/28/11
Justin Chang, Daily Variety: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...shy of a fully developed yarn.... best appreciated as a succession of richly rendered moods, plenty stimulating in the moment but rarely coalescing into something greater."(See all of Justin Chang's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 1,032 words, 10/14/11
Todd McCarthy, Hollywood Reporter: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "A diverting but uncompelling look at Hunter Thompson's coming-of-age in Puerto Rico 50 years ago, courtesy of Johnny Depp."(See all of Todd McCarthy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 989 words, 10/14/11
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Where Thompson gave us skillfully observed substance, Robinson gives us well-crafted veneer.... Still, the film is beautifully rendered."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 770 words, 10/28/11
A.O. Scott, New York Times: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Connoisseurs of straw hats and cool sunglasses will find much to savor, as will aficionados of guilt-free cigarette smoking and midday boozing. A mild lark..."(See all of A.O. Scott's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 867 words, 10/28/11
14.3 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Rum Diary's reviews are separated by an average 14.3 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 Rum Diary (47 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Rum Diary's reviews cover 77.9% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 28,696 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 611 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
The Rum Diary Coverage, Volume & Length (47 Reviews, reviews below)
Reviews Broke 11.6 Hours Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Rum Diary's reviews on average broke 11.6 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 Rum Diary's opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Rum Diary (47 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...
