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Civil Brand
Metascore
29 out of 100

Generally unfavorable - based on 13 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 13
  3. Negative: 8 out of 13
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  1. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Thomas
    80
    A compelling, highly charged film that brings a contemporary perspective to classic prison picture elements.
  2. Variety
    Reviewed by: Walter Dawkins
    60
    Film explores the abuses rampant in woman's prisons and the powerlessness of the inmates, while telling the uplifting story of one inmate, Frances (LisaRae).
  3. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Sheri Linden
    50
    Although the film loses its way in the late going with a preponderance of melodramatic elements that dilute the more compelling social message, for much of its running time it packs a visceral punch, thanks in large part to a strong cast headed by LisaRaye, N'Bushe Wright and Mos Def.
  4. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Maitland McDonagh
    40
    There's way too much of the usual bonding, beatings, petty humiliation by guards, cat fights in the yard and trips to the hole.
  5. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ernest Hardy
    40
    There are also strong flickers here of a film that might have been.
  6. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Elizabeth Weitzman
    38
    Exploitation shamelessly posing as empowerment, Neema Barnette's self-congratulatory drama about women in prison promises to reveal shocking truths.
  7. Premiere
    Reviewed by: Peter Debruge
    38
    There's no question that Civil Brand has an ambitious premise, but it feels boxed in by the standard prison-movie formula.
  8. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Nathan Rabin
    30
    Civil Brand's aesthetic is pure mid-'70s blaxploitation, and not in an ironic or reverent sense. Even the heavy-handed political rhetoric is in keeping with the neo-blaxploitation vibe, since even bad blaxploitation movies often had revolutionary undercurrents.
  9. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Dana Stevens
    30
    Before Civil Brand erupts into over-the-top melodrama (which is pretty early), it shows some interest in its characters, and in its less screechy moments the dialogue has the rough, bantering ring of actual speech.
  10. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Robert K. Elder
    25
    Plagued by continuity problems, ham-fisted storytelling and a problematic voiceover by Da Brat, Civil Brand feels less like a prison movie than a prison sentence.
  11. New York Post
    Reviewed by: V.A. Musetto
    25
    The cast includes rappers Da Brat, Mos Def and MC Lyte. Their fans might get some pleasure from Civil Brand. Everybody else best stay away.
  12. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Laura Sinagra
    20
    Without a scorcher like Pam Grier, the sub-NYPD Blue dialogue and acting dilute what could have been a shrieking wake-up call about for-profit prisons.
  13. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: J.R. Jones
    20
    Corrupt warden, sadistic guards, new inmate debauched by her surroundings, prison-break hostage drama--could have come straight from an old George Raft vehicle.
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