83
Metascore
9 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100CineVueAlasdair BaymanCineVueAlasdair BaymanUltimately a small tale of the struggles of ordinary working-class people against the tourist trade, in a wider political context, the film exists in a deeply contemporary space. Through its filmmaking craft, this debut remarkably operates in a timeless space.
- 100The Observer (UK)Mark KermodeThe Observer (UK)Mark KermodeIt’s a genuine modern masterpiece, which establishes Jenkin as one of the most arresting and intriguing British film-makers of his generation.
- 91The Film StageRory O'ConnorThe Film StageRory O'ConnorJenkin’s script is peppered with comedy, occasionally of a more subtle variety than men dressed as penises—even if that drew the biggest laugh.
- 80CineVuePatrick GambleCineVuePatrick GambleA formally dazzling, half-comic portrait of a community struggling against the tides of change.
- 80The GuardianPeter BradshawThe GuardianPeter BradshawWhat an intriguing and unexpectedly watchable film. Bait is an experiment – and a successful one.
- 80The Hollywood ReporterStephen DaltonThe Hollywood ReporterStephen DaltonJenkin's heavily stylized debut is a disorienting experience at first, but it ultimately creates a boldly Expressionistic mood of uncanny beauty and mesmerizing otherness.
- 80VarietyJessica KiangVarietyJessica KiangThe engaging and defiantly hand-crafted, offbeat experiment Bait may be black and white, but its insights, thankfully, come in subtly graded shades of gray.
- 75LarsenOnFilmJosh LarsenLarsenOnFilmJosh LarsenBait functions on a subliminal level. A concoction of illogical insert shots, mismatched sound, and nonlinear edits, it has little regard for a cinematically conventional sense of time and space.
- 70Screen DailyDemetrios MatheouScreen DailyDemetrios MatheouThat the story doesn’t play like a soap, or indeed a Ken Loach film, is down to the director’s technical and narrative approach.