75
Metascore
21 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90Village VoiceVillage VoiceA slow-motion-enhanced kiss scene, with Corinealdi in top I-don't-give-a-f--- strut, is a startling example of DuVernay's ability to conjure drama that at once takes place in a character's head and in a recognizable real world. It's beautifully nuanced and confidently ambiguous - and so is the movie.
- 90Los Angeles TimesKenneth TuranLos Angeles TimesKenneth TuranSo though it echoes the films of Charles Burnett, the plays of August Wilson and "A Raisin in the Sun," at its heart Middle of Nowhere is old-school, character-driven narrative at its most quietly effective.
- 90The New York TimesManohla DargisThe New York TimesManohla DargisMs. DuVernay, from start to finish in this very fine movie, works to make sure that Ruby is a woman to remember.
- 88Philadelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyPhiladelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyDuVernay, a low-key director sparing in her use of emotion and music, has made an existential drama that is European in its feel.
- 80Time OutDavid FearTime OutDavid FearThis is humanistic drama done right.
- 75Slant MagazineSlant MagazineIn a cinema landscape where the representation of the black female experience is most visibly explored through the modes of outlandish comedy, unironic melodrama, or not at all, Ava DuVernay's take is a decidedly refreshing one.
- 70The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeThe Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeA deceptively slight film that strikes the right balance between realist family drama and earnestness.
- 60New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanNew York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanAt heart, Middle of Nowhere offers material we've seen many times before. But between her perceptive direction and Corinealdi's layered performance, this modest, micro-budgeted story has been beautifully packaged.
- 50VarietyRob NelsonVarietyRob NelsonSolidly acted but aloof and slow as molasses.