44
Metascore
15 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 70VarietyJoe LeydonVarietyJoe LeydonA loose-knit, character-driven comedy that percolates with good-vibe amusement, often earning industrial-strength guffaws with sneaky one-liners and tossed-off non-sequiturs.
- 63USA TodayClaudia PuigUSA TodayClaudia PuigDirecting seems to suit Luke, who also does some of his best work to date on screen.
- 60The Hollywood ReporterThe Hollywood ReporterIn large part the film succeeds, feeling like a good-natured throwback.
- 50New York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinNew York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinIf you want proof that Will Ferrell is the most riotously funny straight man since Jack Benny, observe the way his utter sincerity (in the Ralph Bellamy role, as Wendell’s rival for Eva Mendes) lifts this two-ton piece of whimsy into the stratosphere.
- 50Village VoiceJ. HobermanVillage VoiceJ. HobermanA sweet, dumb pup of a movie, not unlike its eponymous hero, The Wendell Baker Story frisks along sniffing the sidewalk.
- 50The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenThe appeal of The Wendell Baker Story depends on how charming you find the Wilson brothers, with their chipmunk grins and hip smart-aleck attitude. For my taste, a little goes a long way.
- 42Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanEntertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanFeels like an attempt to rebottle the postmodern fizz of Wes Anderson's "Bottle Rocket." I wish instead they'd put a stopper in it.
- 40L.A. WeeklyL.A. WeeklyFor a movie aiming to play like some 1970s throwback, both in sound and spirit, the most depressing thing about The Wendell Baker Story is how messy and impersonal it feels.
- 40Los Angeles TimesCarina ChocanoLos Angeles TimesCarina ChocanoA cast this charismatic is bound to make something of the situation. In short bursts, the movie is alternately sunny and charming, dark and weird, confounding and dull.
- 30The New YorkerAnthony LaneThe New YorkerAnthony LaneSome people make films in homage to Ingmar Bergman, others nod to the French New Wave, but only the Wilsons would think to follow in the footsteps of Burt Reynolds.