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Is Anybody There?

EMAILPRINTBig Beach Films

Is Anybody There? reviews
54
8.4 User Score:

Mixed or average reviews

Based on 19 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 5 votes
Read user comments
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Movie Info

Genre(s): Drama

Written by: Peter Harness

Directed by: John Crowley

Release Date:
Theatrical: April 17, 2009
DVD: November 17, 2009

Running Time: 95 minutes, Color

Origin: USA

Summary

RATING: PG-13 for language including sexual references, and some disturbing images

Starring Michael Caine, Bill Milner, Anne-Marie Duff, David Morrissey, and Leslie Phillips

Christmas 1987 marks the one-year anniversary of Lark Hall’s opening for business as an old age home in an English seaside town. But ten-year-old Edward isn’t much in the mood to celebrate. He has had to give up his room; and his Mum and Dad don’t have as much time for him as they used to, overwhelmed as they are with the day-to-day management of the home and the struggle to stave off financial ruin. On the other hand, living in an old folks’ home offers a curious, clever child like Edward the chance to explore what, exactly, comes after death. And went a retired magician moves into the home, Edward shows him to believe in magic again. (Big Beach)

What The Critics Said

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...

90

Los Angeles Times Betsy Sharkey

It is also hard not to see remnants of a younger Michael Caine -- beautifully seductive and enigmatic all those years ago in "Alfie." He has said his wife cried when she saw the performance; you understand why.

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80

Empire Philip Wilding

Caine leads an impeccable cast in a story that is as touching as it is funny, turning the mundane minutiae of fading lives into a vibrant display.

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80

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

The sentimentality is held in check by Caine, who rises to the occasion with a bleak, angry performance.

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75

Portland Oregonian Marc Mohan

A kid-meets-curmudgeon comedy that transcends its formulaic skeleton thanks both to the veteran actor's charm and a smarter-than-average screenplay.

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75

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

Blending humor and heartbreak in a performance that makes a small movie a richly satisfying one, Caine truly is magic.

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70

The Hollywood Reporter Michael Rechtshaffen

While Caine and young Milner make for amusing adversaries, it's nice to see Crowley paying respect to his elders by populating the retirement home with a number of familiar faces, including those belonging to Rosemary Harris, Sylvia Syms and longtime "Coronation Street" resident Thelma Barlow.

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63

New York Post Lou Lumenick

All-too-familiar and schmaltzy territory for both coming-of-age films and movies with elderly actors.

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63

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

I can't really recommend the film, unless you admire Caine as much as I do, which is certainly possible.

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63

Miami Herald Connie Ogle

You don't need a Ouija board to suss out where all this is heading, but Is Anybody There? counteracts its deficiencies -- predictability, sentimentality -- with a healthy dose of dark humor.

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60

New York Daily News Joe Neumaier

More deft than it first appears, director John Crowley's gentle-but-not-sappy drama features another late-day masterpiece-in-miniature from Michael Caine.

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60

Washington Post Philip Kennicott

Caine is magnificent, and the film is worth a look for his contribution alone. But Milner is a promising actor, too, and the pairing of young and old is believable and occasionally very moving.

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50

San Francisco Chronicle Walter Addiego

Requires us to repress any thoughts about stale material and keep Caine's heartfelt performance front and center.

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50

Boston Globe Ty Burr

Writer Peter Harness has based his screenplay on his own childhood experiences, but personal doesn't necessarily translate to fresh.

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50

The Onion (A.V. Club) Tasha Robinson

The script is always shakier than the performers trying to bring it across, and by the third act, it lets them down completely.

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50

The New York Times Stephen Holden

What balances the movie is Mr. Caine's exceptional portrayal of old age as the accumulation of a lifetime's experience. In his performance the child, the youthful rogue and the forgetful codger all live at once.

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45

NPR Bob Mondello

All of this is at once predictable and implausible -- a two-hander of a story so overplotted and overpopulated that by the time it's winding up, the question isn't so much Is Anybody There? as it is, "Why on earth are so many bodies here?"

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40

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

No one could save Is Anybody There? from its treacly self and Michael Caine doesn't, but he gives it a grand try.

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40

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

On the whole, there are precious few life lessons in Is Anybody There? that haven't been noted before.

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30

Village Voice Nicolas Rapold

Even Crowley, who seems to have a knack with overloaded material, can't quite bring the thing in for a safe landing in all the slush.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 8.4 (out of 10) based on 5 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

dan m gave it a9:
Although this movie has some cliches, it also has some fine acting and an uplifting underlying spirit . The bittersweet ending is especially well done. This is Caine's movie and it shows his magnificent range.

Tassia B gave it a10:
This movie is the whole package. Go for the gallow's humor, stay for the emotional payoff. You won't regret it!

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