A Bag of Hammers
Metascore
50 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 11 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 11
  3. Negative: 2 out of 11
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  1. Variety
    Reviewed by: Joe Leydon
    May 8, 2012
    70
    First-time feature helmer Brian Crano maneuvers some tricky tonal shifts with impressive ease in A Bag of Hammers, a droll, quirky comedy with a pleasant amount of heart.
  2. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Scott Tobias
    May 9, 2012
    67
    The film has an earnest quality that asserts itself more and more as it sputters along, and the men reveal more personal reasons to insert themselves into the boy's life. It's a good lesson for other films of its ilk: Leaving the world of indie disaffection is an important first step on the road to greatness.
  3. Movieline
    Reviewed by: Alison Willmore
    May 10, 2012
    65
    It's a film that should be appallingly twee, but more often than not is actually scruffy and sweet, thanks to a nicely underplayed turn by Chandler Canterbury as the kid, Kelsey, and the chemistry between Jason Ritter and Jake Sandvig as hipster grifters Ben and Alan.
  4. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Elizabeth Weitzman
    May 10, 2012
    60
    Woven amid the glib one-liners and contrived scenarios is an unexpected, and undeniably touching, sense of heart.
  5. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Michelle Orange
    May 8, 2012
    60
    A few striking performances - Ritter, Preston, and Canterbury are especially great - smooth out what might have been a much bumpier ride.
  6. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Lou Lumenick
    May 11, 2012
    50
    Rebecca Hall is wasted as Sandvig's sister and the film's voice of reason.
  7. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Andy Webster
    May 10, 2012
    50
    Any film tossing comic interludes among its closing credits has to be convinced of their hilarity and of the good will the movie has earned with viewers by then. Perhaps the film's naked traffic in sentiment up to that point made Mr. Crano so bold. Whatever; his confidence was unwarranted.
  8. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: John DeFore
    May 8, 2012
    50
    A dicey blend that generates viewer goodwill but can't make its conflicting vibes gel, A Bag of Hammers will play best with the most soft-hearted viewers provided they don't mind rooting for unrepentant felons.
  9. Slant Magazine
    Reviewed by: Andrew Schenker
    May 8, 2012
    50
    Suffers from both an odd, ineffective structure and a low-key tone that jars uncomfortably with the subject matter and makes the film's stakes seem unnecessary low.
  10. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Robert Abele
    May 17, 2012
    30
    Thin, neatly folded, paper-airplane of a movie threatens to nose dive into tweeville.
  11. Time Out New York
    Reviewed by: Nick Schager
    May 8, 2012
    20
    The real scam was the filmmakers tricking Rebecca Hall (and a cameoing Amanda Seyfried) into participating in this blunt instrument of an indie.

User Reviews

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User Score
6.5 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 4 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 1
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 1
  3. Negative: 0 out of 1
  1. Akuto
    5
    For a directorial debut this was overall a pretty good movie. The shifts in tone are smooth yet somehow still misplaced, as the film begins as a comedy and gradually loses its focus as it swerves between tragic and heartfelt territories. However, if you can overlook the amateur directing and the amateur actors, it really is worth a watch if you're not interested in thinking very hard.… Full Review »
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