53
Metascore
18 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75TheWrapWilliam BibbianiTheWrapWilliam BibbianiPerhaps a little too slight to be memorable in the long run, this sensitive and charming tale reassures without, somehow, completely ignoring reality.
- 70The Hollywood ReporterLovia GyarkyeThe Hollywood ReporterLovia GyarkyeIt’s both an effective star vehicle and a tender tearjerker.
- 63The Associated PressLindsey BahrThe Associated PressLindsey BahrThe film does a good job balancing the drama with the comedy however, and is helped by a strong supporting cast, including Lil Rel Howery and Anthony Carrigan as Matt’s best friends.
- 60VarietyOwen GleibermanVarietyOwen GleibermanIt transitions Hart from playfully scowling cutup to earnest heartfelt actor, and it does so in a way that, at times, is genuinely touching, even as the audience can see every sanded-down conflict and market-tested beat falling into place.
- 50The A.V. ClubJesse HassengerThe A.V. ClubJesse HassengerThere could be something to say here about how comically low society’s expectations for fathers remain. The movie also briefly, incisively captures the new-parent contradiction of desperately needing help while wanting to be left alone, free of unsolicited input. But director and co-writer Paul Weitz (About A Boy) keeps making odd choices for what, in a single father’s life, requires comic or dramatic emphasis.
- 50San Francisco ChronicleChris VognarSan Francisco ChronicleChris VognarIt takes a little while, but Fatherhood eventually becomes exactly what you expected. It will make no converts, nor will it push away the faithful. It’s a Kevin Hart movie, after all.
- 50Los Angeles TimesMark OlsenLos Angeles TimesMark OlsenThough Logelin’s story of loss and perseverance is touching, there isn’t really anything deep or convincing about grief or parenting in Fatherhood, making this promising tale something more middling and a touch disappointing.
- 50The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Aparita BhandariThe Globe and Mail (Toronto)Aparita BhandariThe challenge of watching Fatherhood is that it’s tough to make out what sort of a narrative it’s trying to tell.
- 40The GuardianCharles BramescoThe GuardianCharles BramescoHart comports himself with a more dialed-back version of the jittery everyman affability he’s developed over decades in the comedy circuit, a schtick that reads as just that – a pose, a well-honed affectation. There is an immense and documentable falseness at the core of his performance that drags down the salvageable movie all around it, far from the redemption arc clincher his handlers may have had in mind.