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Bread and Tulips
Metascore
68 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 21 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 16 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 21
  3. Negative: 0 out of 21
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  1. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Mick LaSalle
    100
    A movie about serendipity and spontaneity.
  2. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    88
    It may be that a relationship like the one here between Rosalba and Fernando is impossible in real life. All the more reason for this movie.
  3. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Dana Stevens
    80
    Soldini's amiable new comedy suggests that an older, better Italy of imagination, rationality and civility survives on the fringes of a modern nation obsessed, like most others, with consumerism, empty prosperity and easy pleasure.
  4. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Stephen Hunter
    80
    Nicely done, sweet, delicately comic and a complete delight.
  5. New Times (L.A.)
    Reviewed by: Jean Oppenheimer
    80
    A charming little film, filled with eccentric characters and ingratiating performances.
  6. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Fred Camper
    80
    The first half of the film, in which Maglietta gradually discovers herself as something other than a servant, is genuinely engaging.
  7. Christian Science Monitor
    Reviewed by: David Sterritt
    75
    Maglietta gives a magical performance in this lightweight but flavorsome comedy.
  8. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Lou Lumenick
    75
    An utterly beguiling tale.
  9. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Carrie Rickey
    75
    Actresses such as Maglietta are why movies were invented: You never get tired of her mercurial personality or of her infinitely compelling face.
  10. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Loren King
    75
    Manages the right balance of fairy tale and joyous self-discovery. And the Venice locations don't hurt.
    All this critic's reviews
  11. Baltimore Sun
    Reviewed by: Chris Kaltenbach
    75
    Soldini's consistently understated touch, and a poignant turn by Licia Maglietta as the confused and bemused main character, turns Bread and Tulips into a character study worth studying.
    All this critic's reviews
  12. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Hazel-Dawn Dumpert
    70
    Maglietta, whose soulful countenance and offhand grace are soothing to behold, and Ganz, who says more with a shrug and sigh than most poets do with a sonnet.
  13. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Thomas
    70
    Too lethargic and strung-out for its own good. Thankfully, it casts a pleasant, amusing and touching spell anyway, but more energy and a markedly shorter running time might have turned a sunny diversion into something more special.
  14. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marjorie Baumgarten
    67
    It's an endearing romantic daydream, but misses the bus where matters of reality are concerned.
  15. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: William Arnold
    67
    A sweet-spirited, extremely well-cast little comedy.
  16. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Elizabeth Weitzman
    63
    As escapist fantasies go, this easygoing romance is a modest winner.
  17. Mr. Showbiz
    Reviewed by: Michael Atkinson
    60
    For some viewers, this will seem a trial of predictability and unrelenting sweetness; for others, it's more than enough.
    All this critic's reviews
  18. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Marta Barber
    50
    It's all very sweet, but the film goes in too many directions.
  19. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Frank Lovece
    50
    Characters' eccentricities feel contrived and the wackiness seems forced, though the film's amiable ambling does keep the viewer intrigued, if not charmed.
  20. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Jessica Winter
    50
    A happy ending is never at issue here -- it's clear where she's going, but there's little clue where she's been.
  21. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Desson Thomson
    40
    A little too shopworn and pokey to be more than a respectable European diversion.
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