21 Grams
User Score
8.0 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 139 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 121 out of 139
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 139
  3. Negative: 12 out of 139

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  1. caporegime
    Jun 10, 2009
    3
    So trying hard to make things complicated and ending up making this film boring enough to doze of my adrenalin of caffeine.
  2. PaulW.
    Mar 6, 2008
    2
    Grams is a completely boring and uncompelling story about people who are instantly forgettable because we have seen them all before. Much of the character's actions are either clichéd or too unsympathetic to be gripping. The movie plods so much that it actually slows down real time, the story jumps around like a frog on speed and the soundtrack, if you can call it that, didn't take more than 1 guitarist recording some feedback from his guitar while he was taking a nap on it.… Expand
  3. DamianP.
    Apr 15, 2004
    3
    The story was drab and the director's style annoyed me. Best avoided.
  4. TimW.
    Mar 29, 2004
    2
    BORING and unbelievable!! Naomi Watts is so overrated.
  5. JulianM.
    Mar 29, 2004
    2
    What is the point? Sh.t happens even to rich people and poor people have even more sh.t happen and have terible lives? If Penn is a math professor why does his apartment look like something out of Achitectural Digest. There is nothing, NOTHING that gives any insight into the characters' personalities or their relationships. It's just a bunch of sketched figures who we're supposed to fill with portent and importance - It ranks with the pretentiosness of a really bad French art film. The performers do what they can with next to nothing. Supersized downer with a heaping side of pretension.… Expand
  6. LowCompanion
    Mar 23, 2004
    3
    In its snotty art-student way, this movie is no less sudsy & cliche ridden than your average soap opera. Every plot twist is choreographed a million miles off for anyone who has seen their share of "dark" indies. The central deux ex machina is, as in "Amores Perros," an obvious, silly Tarantino-ism. Worse, the film is coated in a thick grime & has the most ridiculous, "I AM AN IMPORTANT MOVIE!" soundtrack in memory. … Expand
  7. LiamS.
    Jan 19, 2004
    3
    This movie suffers from the plot technique of revealing the end of the move at its mid-point. This for me ruined what would have otherwise been an excellent plot. As it was, I found the acting memorable and the storyline disjointed and unnecessarily complex, given the rather simple underlying story.
  8. HowardT.
    Dec 31, 2003
    3
    Pure agony. A mess.
  9. MarieK.
    Nov 23, 2003
    3
    I wanted to like this movie, I wanted to like the acting. I'm a Sean Penn fan. Instead I found myself wanting to leave in the middle out of boredom, mostly because I didn't care about the characters. In their attempt to make the characters unique and memorable, they went overboard and made them cartoonish. (Does no one ever comb their hair? -- my goodness -- so staged!) The movie is both contrived and manipulative, and not the least bit organic. It touches on important subjects like death and religion in a flippant manner -- let's throw this in for *drama*. I felt like the flash forwards, backwards, etc were an afterthought to try to make the movie more profound. Didn't work. I really really wanted to like this movie, I'm very disappointed. :(… Expand

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
70 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 41 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 31 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 41
  3. Negative: 5 out of 41
  1. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Kirk Honeycutt
    90
    A stunning virtuoso performance by director, cast and crew. This movie knocks you out with an astonishing blend of hyper-realism, visual complexity and powerful themes.
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  2. Premiere
    Reviewed by: Glenn Kenny
    50
    Too-laborious meditation on life and death.
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  3. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: Peter Rainer
    30
    It’s forceful, to be sure, but in a lurid way that suggests a telenovela that’s been baking in the sun too long.
    Read full review
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