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Caveman's Valentine, The
Universal Focus


7.4

based on 27 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 5 votes
Read user comments
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FILM:

MPAA RATING: R for language, some violence and sexuality

Starring Samuel L. Jackson, Aunjanue Ellis, Ann Magnuson, Tamara Tunie, Anthony Michael Hall, and Colm Feore

In this penetrating and touching neo-Gothic thriller, Samuel L. Jackson delivers a powerful performance as Romulus Ledbetter, a man caught on the sharp edge between genius and madness. (Universal Focus)

GENRE(S):	Drama
WRITTEN BY:	George Dawes Green (also novel)
DIRECTED BY:	Kasi Lemmons
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: July 17, 2001 Video: July 17, 2001 Theatrical: March 2, 2001
RUNNING TIME:	105 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

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...

Washington Post Rita Kempley

An intriguing, visually startling murder mystery that showcases the virtuosity of Samuel L. Jackson.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

Holds less water as a mystery because its plot holes - and choppy pacing - make it seem as disconnected from reality as its hero. But Jackson is so frighteningly effective, and affecting, as Romulus that you're sucked in anyway.

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

So suggestively atmospheric is Amelia Vincent's cinematography and Robin Standefer's art direction that mood -- and of course Jackson's performance -- sustains the movie.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

To watch Samuel L. Jackson in the role is to realize again what a gifted actor he is, how skilled at finding the right way to play a character who, in other hands, might be unplayable.

Washington Post Michael O'Sullivan

If anyone can sell the idea of ... some psycho "Sherlock Holmes," it's Samuel L. Jackson.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

There is pleasure in giving oneself up to the gusty swirls of the film's imagery, and especially to the handsome grandeur of its star.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Sean Axmaker

Never quite shakes itself free of the tired cliche that street people are quirky, sometimes cute, and somehow privy to a spiritual purity lost to us social folk.

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

The movie loses its magic by the time the solution is revealed.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

The details of the story, crucial in a picture that's at least partly a mystery, remain a tangled blur.

The New York Times A.O. Scott

Works as everything but a mystery, yet it is intriguing in a number of ways. And the ending is as resolute as you might have hoped for. It lets Romulus and the movie retain their integrity.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

Overall it's a frustratingly uneven movie, delicate at one moment and bluntly obvious the next.

Dallas Observer Luke Y. Thompson

Deserves an A for ambition, but the final product is a pastiche of too many predecessors.

Boston Globe Jay Carr

Dramatically speaking, The Caveman's Valentine is a dead end.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

Offers a dazzling showcase for Samuel L. Jackson.

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

From the start, this movie sets the bar high -- then, unfortunately, runs smack into it.

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

More psychological realism and less showy cinema would have made this offbeat melodrama more memorable.

Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy

An unsteady and uneven film, which bangs up against its ambitions gracelessly and distractingly.

Slate David Edelstein

You couldn't ask for a better pair of wild eyes than Jackson's.

Los Angeles Times Kevin Thomas

As impressive as Jackson is and as thought-provoking as director Kasi Lemmons' movie is, it's ultimately satisfying neither as a genre piece nor as an art film.

USA Today Staff [Not Credited]

Calling a cave of rocks home while spouting invective worthy of the Juilliard attendee he once was, homeless-by-choice Samuel L. Jackson worms his way into one of the least compelling mysteries in years.

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

It hovers somewhere in that never-never land of movies that try to do too much and don't quite live up to any of their ambitions.

Chicago Reader Reece Pendleton

Kasi Lemmons directed this tepid thriller, whose only genuinely creepy aspect is its cavalier and uninformed use of mental illness and classical music to heighten the meager suspense.

Film.com Robert Horton

It may have a good liberal conscience, and genuine sympathy for the rare perspective of a homeless person, but this movie is a fundamentally sentimental exercise.

San Francisco Chronicle Edward Guthmann

A wildly implausible thriller.

Time Richard Corliss

Despite Jackson's typically bravura turn, this Valentine massacre marks a step backward for the gifted director of Eve's Bayou.

LA Weekly Ernest Hardy

Especially disappointing that Lemmons, who in "Eve's Bayou" gave us insightful glimpses into the emotional world of black adults, has lost her balance, elevating formula over revelation.

Village Voice Amy Taubin

Valentine isn't exploitative or trendy in the manner of so many indie films. Rather, it seems like the kind of art film that might have been dreamed up by a feverish high schooler.

The average user rating for this movie is 7.4 (out of 10) based on 5 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Paul D. gave it a 3:
A gppd performance by Samuel Jackson, but the movie is disjointed and so unbelievable that it doesn't work as either mystery or character study.

Ellen A. gave it a 10:
Unbelievably fabulous, one of the best and most original movies I have ever seen. It's not guilty of black exploitation as every other major motion picture seems to be that stars black actors and actresses. A classic. Brilliant.

Olen L. gave it an 8:
The Caveman's Valentine is a movie about a crazy homeless man who happens to stumble upon a murder. It is not a murder mystery involving a crazy homeless man. The regular life of Samuel Jackson's character could have carried this film alone.

Warwick A. gave it a 9:
I found this movie challenging and engaging. The direction was always interesting and exciting. I thoroughly enjoyed the film on its many levels. I think the critics of this film have missed the boat... Jackson is brilliant as Romulus. Inspired casting! I haven't enjoyed a film as much as this in a long time. It reminded me of "The Red Violin" because of it's intricacy and intelligence.

Michael F. gave it a 7:
This is a good solid film that delivers the thrills and chills and art. The only flaw with this film is that it becomes just another murder mystery. At the beginning it has this mentally ill man (brilliantly performed by Sam Jackson) who stumbles upon a body. This movie is mysterious and at times clever. There is no doubt that this movie is original, that it is, but towards the end it just loses the balance between murder mystery and a character piece, if only those two could have joined forces.

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Caveman's Valentine, The Universal Focus

Caveman's Valentine, The
Universal Focus