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THE SWITCH (2010)Movie Reviews
Romantic comedy about a single woman who has a child with a sperm donor and finds out seven years later that her best friend substituted his own sperm for her donor's. Cast:Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Patrick Wilson, Jeff Goldblum, Juliette LewisDirector:Will Speck, Josh GordonRelease Date:August 20, 2010DVD Release:December 21, 2010From:MiramaxRating:PG-13Length:1 hr 41 min
The Switch (2010) played to moderate reviews. • Rene Rodriguez wrote in the Miami Herald, "...slight but pleasurable entertainment... a surprisingly sweet, tender story of a man paralyzed by unrequited love but motivated by parenthood..." • And Keith Phipps wrote for the AV Club, "...two likeable stars, a thin gimmick, and hope that chemistry compensates for a toothless script." More Reviews Below...
The Switch (2010) Positive Reviews (40 Reviews, reviews below)
Thelma Adams, Us Weekly: MODERATE(cg) "Bateman's winning comic performance and his endearing rapport with Kassie's son, Sebastian, give a sense of what this film could have been."(See all of Thelma Adams's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 189 words, 08/19/10
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: VERY GOOD(cg) "...squeezes fresh laughs out of what is, in essence, a rather startlingly post-Freudian, nature-trumps-nurture view of child development."(See all of Owen Gleiberman's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 611 words, 08/27/10
Claudia Puig, USA Today: MODERATE(cg) "...the actions, choices and general behavior of the characters are oddly removed from what goes in the real world.... Bateman essentially carries the film..."(See all of Claudia Puig's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 410 words, 08/20/10
James Berardinelli, Reel Views: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "Although the dramatic elements vary from passable to strong, the comedy is often forced and generic.... the film seems confused about what it wants to do and be..."(See all of James Berardinelli's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 851 words, 08/18/10
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NEW YORK/LOS ANGELES/CHICAGO/TORONTO (12 Reviews)
Stephen Holden, New York Times: WEAK "The first third is so bizarre that it leads you to wonder if, through some miraculous lack of oversight, the movie will blaze an unpredictable path. No such luck."(See all of Stephen Holden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 723 words, 08/20/10
Joe Neumaier, New York Daily News: WEAK(cg) "...hackneyed, bland and dopey with a dollop of outré. It's Judd Apatow lite, Farrelly brothers special blend. Just call it 'When Harry Met Sally and Her Ovum.' "(See all of Joe Neumaier's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 470 words, 08/20/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: GOOD "More his journey than hers, more satire than slapstick, the film is that rare example of rom-com about men, which turns out to be a nice switch indeed."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 745 words, 08/20/10
Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...all over the place, but around the halfway point it starts getting interesting... 'pretty good' puts it ahead of plenty of recent romantic comedies. Puh-LEN-ty."(See all of Michael Phillips's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 599 words, 08/20/10
Richard Roeper, Chicago Sun-Times: WEAK(cg) "The opening narration, the bland score, the stock characters, the scenes that feel utterly staged... it's all there, and you've seen it all before."(See all of Richard Roeper's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 807 words, 08/20/10
Karina Longworth, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "Kassie barely registers as a character.... Saddled with the responsibility of carrying the film, Bateman acquits himself admirably by playing it straight..."(See all of Karina Longworth's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 696 words, 08/18/10
Peter Howell, Toronto Star: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...makes light of circumstances that could fit a modern definition of sexual assault.... anything that takes your mind off the creepy implications is a decidedly good thing..."(See all of Peter Howell's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 704 words, 08/20/10
Rick Groen, Toronto Globe & Mail: MODERATE(cg) "For a few precious scenes, when father and son are alone, the movie is actually amusing, even touching. The rest of the time it's content to stall..."(See all of Rick Groen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 653 words, 08/20/10
Carrie Rickey, Philadelphia Inquirer: VERY GOOD(cg) "...comic-relief duties are expertly handled by Jeff Goldblum and Juliette Lewis, who are straight-out hilarious as the best-friends-of..."(See all of Carrie Rickey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 500 words, 08/20/10
Mick LaSalle, Houston Chronicle: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...think of 'The Switch' as a picnic. Aniston and Bateman each bring a rare Bordeaux, and the writers bring Spam on white bread."(See all of Mick LaSalle's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 730 words, 08/20/10
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: VERY GOOD(cg) "...the formula is pretty well-executed... The kid (Thomas Robinson) is adorable, the couple well-matched, the supporting players veteran scene-stealers..."(See all of Roger Moore's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 503 words, 08/20/10
Tom Horgen, Minneapolis Star-Tribune: MODERATE(cg) "Jennifer Lopez covered similar ground in 'The Back-up Plan'.... [but] Aniston and Bateman find a funny chemistry together..."(See all of Tom Horgen's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 312 words, 08/20/10
Wesley Morris, Boston Globe: MODERATE(cg) "...gimmicky and banal.... Only in a screwball comedy would a man this uptight tolerate a woman whose life is as arbitrary as Kassie's."(See all of Wesley Morris's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 716 words, 08/20/10
Clint O'Connor, Cleveland Plain-Dealer: MODERATE(cg) "Aniston, playing version 27 of Rachel Green, is kind of an extra in her own film. She lacks presence, motivation, and emotion."(See all of Clint O'Connor's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 353 words, 08/20/10
Ted Fry, Seattle Times: MODERATE(cg) "Aniston and Bateman show glimpses of genuine chemistry, but the general infusion of synthetic emotion is a flavorless concoction in dire need of more basting."(See all of Ted Fry's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 349 words, 08/20/10
Tom Long, Detroit News: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...sort of average. But Bateman is so good in it -- natural, funny, yet full of real emotion -- that you immediately want to see him again in a better film."(See all of Tom Long's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 549 words, 08/20/10
Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...slight but pleasurable entertainment... a surprisingly sweet, tender story of a man paralyzed by unrequited love but motivated by parenthood..."(See all of Rene Rodriguez's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 481 words, 08/20/10
ALTERNATIVE/INDIE PRESS (8 Reviews)
Karina Longworth, Village Voice/LA Weekly: FAIR "Kassie barely registers as a character.... Saddled with the responsibility of carrying the film, Bateman acquits himself admirably by playing it straight..."(See all of Karina Longworth's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 696 words, 08/18/10
Peter Keough, Boston Phoenix: VERY GOOD(cg) "...the third sperm-donor comedy this year, and in some ways it's the best. The set-up alone has some of the funniest semen humor since 'There's Something About Mary.' "(See all of Peter Keough's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 163 words, 08/19/10
William Goss, Cinematical: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "...the laughs are sporadic at best. But that performance by Bateman is enough to take a wacky-creepy premise and elevate into something gentle and sweet..."(See all of William Goss's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 614 words, 08/20/10
Nick Schager, Slant: GOOD (NOT GREAT)(cg) "...a passable character-driven rom-com.... comes closer to capturing a measure of emotional truth than many of its genre brethren."(See all of Nick Schager's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 377 words, 08/19/10
MaryAnn Johanson, Flick Filosopher: POOR(cg) "...it's like an interminable sitcom up on the screen.... nasty and mean, a disgusting movie made all the more disgusting by how flippant it is."(See all of MaryAnn Johanson's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 863 words, 08/23/10
HIGHBROW PRESS (4 Reviews)
Stephen Holden, New York Times: WEAK "The first third is so bizarre that it leads you to wonder if, through some miraculous lack of oversight, the movie will blaze an unpredictable path. No such luck."(See all of Stephen Holden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 723 words, 08/20/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: GOOD "More his journey than hers, more satire than slapstick, the film is that rare example of rom-com about men, which turns out to be a nice switch indeed."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 745 words, 08/20/10
Dana Stevens, Slate: MODERATE "...inside this slick, conventional romantic comedy there's a tender, scruffy little movie struggling to get out.... it can't escape the constraints of its own formula..."(See all of Dana Stevens's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 765 words, 08/19/10
Andrew Barker, Daily Variety: POOR "...mangles the premise of its source material ('Baster,' a 1996 short story by Pulitzer-winning novelist Jeffrey Eugenides) in ways that ought to baffle viewers..."(See all of Andrew Barker's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 710 words, 08/16/10
Kirk Honeycutt, Hollywood Reporter: GOOD (NOT GREAT) "Bright spots come in performances by Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman as the leads, with Jeff Goldblum and Juliette Lewis adding sparkle in the roles of best friends."(See all of Kirk Honeycutt's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 586 words, 08/17/10
Betsy Sharkey, Los Angeles Times: GOOD "More his journey than hers, more satire than slapstick, the film is that rare example of rom-com about men, which turns out to be a nice switch indeed."(See all of Betsy Sharkey's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 745 words, 08/20/10
Stephen Holden, New York Times: WEAK "The first third is so bizarre that it leads you to wonder if, through some miraculous lack of oversight, the movie will blaze an unpredictable path. No such luck."(See all of Stephen Holden's reviews...)(Read the full review...) 723 words, 08/20/10
16.5 Percentage Points Average Difference Between Reviews (Norm is 18.4pp; <18.4pp = More Consistent; >18.4pp = More Mixed)
The Switch (2010)'s reviews are separated by an average 16.5 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 Switch (2010) (40 reviews) Roll over dots for each review
Coverage:The Switch (2010)'s reviews cover 71.5% of potential readers (average is 67.9%). Volume:The film's reviews total 21,525 words involume (average is 20,194 words). Length:The film's reviews average 538 words in length (the norm is 517 words).
Reviews Broke 1.3 Hours After Release (Norm is 1.2 Release)
The Switch (2010)'s reviews on average broke 1.3 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 The Switch (2010)'s opening day. Click on any bar for a list of the reviews for that day.
The Switch (2010) (40 reviews, click on bars for reviews)
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