Dead Man Walking
Metascore
80 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 26 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 22 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 26
  3. Negative: 2 out of 26
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  1. Film.com
    Reviewed by: Tom Keogh
    30
    Overpraised, intellectually soft, narratively unfocused, and thematically ambivalent.
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  2. The New Republic
    Reviewed by: Stanley Kauffmann
    30
    The picture is cloudy in intent. That cloudiness is deepened by Susan Sarandon's performance as Sister Helen. If she were giving the role what it seems to demand, a glow of true religious light, the film would have some organic cohesion, a strong spiritual cord running through it. But Sarandon does little more than present her face. [Feb. 5, 1996]
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User Reviews

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User Score
7.9 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 39 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 15
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 15
  3. Negative: 2 out of 15
  1. Compi24
    8
    Challenging, affecting, and uncommonly well-performed, "Dead Man Walking" earnestly displays a worthwhile and incisive loyalty to its powerful source material.… Full Review »
  2. mctrollol1269
    0
    Its was not an easy watch. Sean Penn's character almost never moves from the cell and talks to the nun from through bars. Structuring the film like this leads to a very boring script where nothing happens, it is predictable from start to finish. I would recommend this movie to someone who wants to consider the pro and cons of the death sentence, but it is definitely not an entertaining movie.… Full Review »
  3. Lissa
    10
    This made me change my views on the Death Penalty. Amazing film.
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