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Around the Bend
Warner Independent Pictures


8.5

based on 31 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 10 votes
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MPAA RATING: R for language

Starring Michael Caine, Christopher Walken, Josh Lucas, Glenne Headly, Jonah Bobo, David Eigenberg, Robert Douglas, and Carlos A. Cabarcas

Around the Bend tells the story of four generations of men who are suddenly brought together by the chance to uncover the truth about their family's past. The journey will take them out on the road to a world full of surprises -- some comic, some dramatic and all of them personal. (Warner Independent Pictures)

GENRE(S):	Drama
WRITTEN BY:	Jordan Roberts
DIRECTED BY:	Jordan Roberts
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: February 22, 2005 Video: February 22, 2005 Theatrical: October 8, 2004
RUNNING TIME:	85 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

Best Actor (Walken) and Special Grand Prize of the Jury, 2004 Montréal World Film Festival

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

USA Today Claudia Puig

A bittersweet relationship drama with enough honest emotion and gentle humor to move even the steeliest heart.

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

Mr. Walken performs with a marvelously minimalist precision.

The Hollywood Reporter Richard James Havis

Slick, well-packaged emotional drama.

LA Weekly Ron Stringer

The final revelation which, however anticipated, however contrived, stings just enough to make it feel like life.

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

A fine, familial elixir to remedy despair and soften hardened hearts, Around the Bend is likely just the first of many feathers in Roberts shiny new directorial cap.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen

Who would have guessed that, among all the cutesy curves in Around the Bend, the guy walking the straightest line is Christopher Walken?

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

The movie, unfortunately, doesn't really work; it's one of those films where the characters always seem to be Behaving, as if ordinary life has to be jacked up into eccentricity.

Chicago Reader Staff (Not credited)

Roberts never surmounts the cracker-barrel contrivance of the plot, but his low-key humor, clear affection for the characters, and strong cast are enough to put this gentle drama across.

Empire David Hughes

One of those films that seems like it was made mainly for film festivals - and it has the awards to show for it.

Variety Eddie Cockrell

Self-consciously mannered yet fitfully interesting, Around the Bend gets the most mileage it can from the eccentric, low-key charisma of Christopher Walken.

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

The story is spotty, but the acting is fine, especially when Walken is around.

Los Angeles Times Carina Chocano

Gentlemen, it's a male chick flick - "The Dirty Secrets of the Ya-Ya Brotherhood."

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

An awkward amalgam of road movie, buddy comedy and melodramatic conventions, first-time writer-director Jordan Roberts' male weepie ricochets between affecting scenes and insufferably maudlin ones.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

Might as well have been titled "That Kentucky Fried Chicken Movie." That's how it will be referred to, anyway, though some people may insert an adjective such as "convoluted," "disappointing," or "anti-climactic" before the name of the fast-food franchise.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Tasha Robinson

There are good ideas in Around The Bend, but they're presented in outline form, as the bare, dry bones of what could have been a living body.

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

Around the Bend doesn't inspire one to care.

Miami Herald Connie Ogle

If nothing else, director/screenwriter Jordan Roberts knows good music. If only we could say the same about his script.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Sean Axmaker

Writer/director Jordan Roberts aims for heartwarming drama and settles for tepid entertainment.

Boston Globe Ty Burr

The result is a curious hash: warmly funny in the comic scenes and shamelessly sentimental during the sad bits, of which there are many.

San Francisco Chronicle Peter Hartlaub

For the silent masses who cherish those "Hallmark Hall of Fame" specials, but wish they had just a little more profanity, the release of Around the Bend is occasion to rejoice.

Portland Oregonian M. E. Russell

Plays like a certain brand of indie film I hadn't seen in a while: the Self-Consciously Odd Journey of Self-Discovery Through the American Southwest, in which people learn Important Life Lessons while encountering "colorful" characters in small-town diners and motels amid the tumbleweeds.

Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach

What makes the film work better than its nearly unbearable cuteness suggests is the casting of Christopher Walken as the son; the movie has yet to be invented that Walken can't improve simply by showing up.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

It's the showy story, script, and even staging that wear a fella out in this relentlessly precious feature debut by writer-director Jordan Roberts.

The New York Times Manohla Dargis

A heavily padded, thinly conceived, well-meaning movie.

Dallas Observer Robert Wilonsky

The movie comes off as willfully eccentric when it should have been charmingly touching.

Chicago Tribune Allison Benedikt

A well-intentioned, ill-conceived blip of a movie that just happens to star two of the most esteemed actors of our time--Michael Caine and Christopher Walken.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

The longest 85-minute road trip you could imagine.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

As a vegetarian, I'm grateful that Around the Bend -- an extended commercial for KFC passing itself off as a heartwarming family drama -- is a loser.

Washington Post Stephen Hunter

So programmatic, so dogged in hitting the right steps at the right time that it completely lacks spontaneity.

Washington Post Desson Thomson

First-time filmmaker Jordan Roberts worked on this project for years, but merely ended up with dreary cliche.

Village Voice Joshua Land

Veers deep into male-weepie territory.

The average user rating for this movie is 8.5 (out of 10) based on 10 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Tom M. gave it a9:
Great direction, great performances, and great story. What else is there? Oh, yes, a great soundtrack! I purchased the soundtrack a half-hour after I watched the film.

Paul B. gave it a7:
Worth watching - Walken is, as usual, hard not to like in his role and the grandson is portrayed very wonderfully.

Greg T. gave it a7:
The Village Voice stated that this veers into male weepie territory. So what? This movie depicted a young boy, his 30 something father, his 50 something grandfather and his 70 something great grandfather, all interacting at some level. Why can't men interact or are we all robots and only women are attuned to life's tragedies. Fathers should rent this movie and see it with their teenage sons.

Cameron R. gave it a9:
Man! You'd think this was Lassy, the way the critics are kicking it. What the film is... is 'emotional', not sentimental. Simply and honestly emotional. What a pleasant and rare treat to see a film that quietly explores feeling, especially among men. Why on earth is it ruffling so many feathers?

Erin G. gave it a 10:
Great Film.

Mikkel J. gave it a 9:
A film, that takes you on an emotional trip. A great story from at very promising first-time director.

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Around the Bend Warner Independent Pictures

Around the Bend
Warner Independent Pictures