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THE SAMARITAN (2012)Movie Reviews
Thriller about an ex-con trying to stay clean who finds hope when he forms an unexpected bond with a young woman. Cast:Samuel L. Jackson, Luke Kirby, Ruth Negga, Tom WilkinsonDirector:David WeaverRelease Date:May 16, 2012DVD Release:September 25, 2012From:IFCLength:1 hr 33 min
The Samaritan (2012) played in limited release to fair reviews. • Stephen Whitty wrote in the New Jersey Star-Ledger, "...isn't the way smart movies are supposed to work..." • And MaryAnn Johanson wrote for Flick Filosopher, "If the trickery isn't quite as multilayered as we might hope, there's still Samuel L. Jackson's furious performance to appreciate. He's as fun to watch as he always is." More Reviews Below...
The Samaritan (2012) Positive Reviews (18 Reviews, reviews below)
Roger Ebert, RogerEbert.com: VERY GOOD(cg) "...isn't a great noir, but it's true to the tradition and gives Samuel L. Jackson one of his best recent roles.... The final resolution is perhaps a little hasty. But there's something here."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 587 words, 05/18/12
Kat Murphy, MSN Movies: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...casts a genuinely noir spell, and gives Samuel L. Jackson the chance to show how interesting an actor he can be when not straitjacketed into rote action roles."(See all of Kat Murphy's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 759 words, 05/15/12
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (10 Reviews)
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: FAIR "Mr. Jackson pushes the lugubrious plot uphill with sporting deliberation... he seems to know that the film around him should be a light-footed caper instead of a grim noir..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 253 words, 05/18/12
Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: POOR(cg) "...a solid candidate for worst-of-the-year lists.... The most charitable approach to this unfortunate diversion in Jackson's career would be to pretend it never happened."(See all of Elizabeth Weitzman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 301 words, 05/18/12
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: FAIR "...doesn't wind up feeling like a con, exactly, but it has just enough promise to leave viewers feeling ripped off when it comes up short."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 05/18/12
Kyle Smith, New York Post: POOR(cg) "A would-be piece of pulp fiction... proves that even Samuel L. Jackson can be boring.... the grift, like the rest of the movie, feels routine and half-baked."(See all of Kyle Smith's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 142 words, 05/18/12
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: VERY GOOD(cg) "...isn't a great noir, but it's true to the tradition and gives Samuel L. Jackson one of his best recent roles.... The final resolution is perhaps a little hasty. But there's something here."(See all of Roger Ebert's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 587 words, 05/18/12
Nick Schager, Village Voice/LA Weekly: MODERATE "...a by-the-books criminal redemption saga... begins to buckle under the weight of its own self-seriousness and familiarity..."(See all of Nick Schager's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 199 words, 05/16/12
Linda Barnard, Toronto Star: WEAK(cg) "...sets itself up as a crime thriller yet fails to deliver more than a twinge of surprise as it meanders toward a flaccid endgame swindle."(See all of Linda Barnard's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 581 words, 05/18/12
Rick Groen, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE(cg) "...about a third of the way along, there's a shocking revelation that definitely packs a punch. Problem is, it's followed by a near-immediate return to familiar narrative..."(See all of Rick Groen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 198 words, 05/18/12
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "...really, really silly... director David Weaver and co-writer Elan Mastai twist the movie in several different directions before settling for a professional but generic pulp thriller."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 226 words, 05/17/12
KEY CITIES (1 Review)
Stephen Whitty, New Jersey Star-Ledger: MODERATE(cg) "...isn't the way smart movies are supposed to work... It's not honest with its people, or its plot. And the only ones it really cheats are audience members."(See all of Stephen Whitty's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 484 words, 05/18/12
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (7 Reviews)
Nick Schager, Village Voice/LA Weekly: MODERATE "...a by-the-books criminal redemption saga... begins to buckle under the weight of its own self-seriousness and familiarity..."(See all of Nick Schager's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 199 words, 05/16/12
Sam Adams, AV Club: FAIR(cg) "...ought to be an opportunity for an established actor to take risks, and Jackson seems only interested in cashing his paycheck, even if it's not an especially large one."(See all of Sam Adams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 364 words, 05/17/12
Alison Willmore, Movieline: MODERATE(cg) "...comfortably pleasant... until it takes a jarring turn right out of Park Chan-wook, and from there takes a tumble into ludicrousness from which it doesn't recover."(See all of Alison Willmore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 826 words, 05/17/12
Diego Costa, Slant: POOR(cg) "...treads a fine line between film-noir moodiness and crime-thriller triteness, mostly settling for the latter.... a succession of increasingly clichéd twists..."(See all of Diego Costa's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 323 words, 05/18/12
Norman Wilner, Toronto Now: WEAK(cg) "...really, really silly... director David Weaver and co-writer Elan Mastai twist the movie in several different directions before settling for a professional but generic pulp thriller."(See all of Norman Wilner's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 226 words, 05/17/12
MaryAnn Johanson, Flick Filosopher: MODERATE(cg) "If the trickery isn't quite as multilayered as we might hope, there's still Samuel L. Jackson's furious performance to appreciate. He's as fun to watch as he always is."(See all of MaryAnn Johanson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 300 words, 04/23/12
HIGHBROW PRESS (2 Reviews)
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: FAIR "Mr. Jackson pushes the lugubrious plot uphill with sporting deliberation... he seems to know that the film around him should be a light-footed caper instead of a grim noir..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 253 words, 05/18/12
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: FAIR "...doesn't wind up feeling like a con, exactly, but it has just enough promise to leave viewers feeling ripped off when it comes up short."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 05/18/12
MOVIE INDUSTRY (4 Reviews)
Robert Koehler, Daily Variety: MODERATE "...proceeds down a routine path as a crime drama, despite the best efforts of Samuel L. Jackson as an ex-con doing his damnedest to go straight."(See all of Robert Koehler's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 804 words, 01/30/12
Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times: FAIR "...doesn't wind up feeling like a con, exactly, but it has just enough promise to leave viewers feeling ripped off when it comes up short."(See all of Mark Olsen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 229 words, 05/18/12
Jeannette Catsoulis, New York Times: FAIR "Mr. Jackson pushes the lugubrious plot uphill with sporting deliberation... he seems to know that the film around him should be a light-footed caper instead of a grim noir..."(See all of Jeannette Catsoulis's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 253 words, 05/18/12
17.2 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Samaritan (2012)'s reviews are separated by an average 17.2 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 Samaritan (2012) (18 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Samaritan (2012)'s reviews cover 20.1% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 7,277 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 404 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 4 Days Before Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Samaritan (2012)'s reviews on average broke 4 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 Samaritan (2012)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Samaritan (2012) (18 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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