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Keeping Up with the Steins
Metascore
57 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 22 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 22
  3. Negative: 2 out of 22
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  1. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    75
    A fresh and lovable comedy about a dysfunctional Jewish family planning their son's bar mitzvah.
  2. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Elizabeth Weitzman
    75
    Mazel tov to Scott Marshall for creating an endearing portrayal of familial lunacy that ought to charm as many Smiths as it will Steins.
  3. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Mick LaSalle
    75
    The tribute to an aging parent is moving and gives this routine comedy an extra something.
  4. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Ty Burr
    75
    To paraphrase the old ad for Levy's rye bread, you don't have to be Jewish to love "Keeping Up With the Steins," but it helps.
  5. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Nathan Rabin
    75
    What begins as a scathing but loving satire of materialism loses its way once it turns into a warmhearted after-school special about a nice young Jewish boy discovering the true meaning of the bar mitzvah.
  6. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Michael Rechtshaffen
    70
    What could have made for particularly potent satire in the hands of an Albert Brooks or a Christopher Guest arrives in the form of a politely benign family comedy by first-time director Scott Marshall.
  7. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Chuck Wilson
    70
    As director, Scott Marshall displays an unsurprising flair for selling a joke, but also a fine sense of dramatic pacing and, even better, a gift for brevity, neither of which, it could be argued, are innate skills of his famous filmmaking family.
  8. Variety
    Reviewed by: Ronnie Scheib
    70
    A sure-fire audience-pleaser, Scott (son of Garry) Marshall's winning comedy bow could have been titled "My Big Fat Jewish Bar Mitzvah."
  9. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Jonathan Rosenbaum
    70
    Maybe because director Scott Marshall is Garry's son, he allows his affable father to steal the movie from everyone else, and his performance proves to be a small gift worth having.
  10. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Lou Lumenick
    63
    A sitcom with enough big laughs and emotional truth to get audiences past awkward pacing and some slow spots.
  11. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Carrie Rickey
    63
    Despite problems of tone and tempo, Steins is appealingly cast.
  12. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Staff (Not credited)
    63
    Zakarin's semiautobiographical screenplay hits all the sitcom beats.
  13. USA Today
    Reviewed by: Claudia Puig
    63
    Blends humor with heart for a satisfying, if predictable, experience.
  14. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Stephen Holden
    60
    Keeping Up With the Steins would have been a much better film if it had waited twice as long before retracting its fangs.
  15. Baltimore Sun
    Reviewed by: Chris Kaltenbach
    58
    Garry Marshall, old pro that he is, couldn't be more endearing as the grandfather, struggling gamely to make things right.
  16. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Rene Rodriguez
    50
    Director Scott Marshall and screenwriter Mark Zakarin pander to Jewish viewers the way Andy Garcia's "The Lost City" panders to Cuban Americans.
  17. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Stephen Hunter
    50
    The biggest disappointment in the film, however, is Piven's Adam. This film idealizes his character too much and thereby jettisons any case for serious respect.
  18. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Owen Gleiberman
    42
    Garry Marshall takes over the movie (no mystery: his son, Scott, directed it), and Keeping Up With the Steins turns into a recipe to forget: chopped liver with ''heart.''
  19. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Shawn Levy
    42
    Toothless, limp and clumsy.
  20. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marc Savlov
    40
    It just devolves into the limp sort of schmaltzy conclusion you keep hoping it will avoid.
  21. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Michael Phillips
    38
    Squanders a decent comic premise.
  22. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Bill White
    0
    There is potential for laughs in a satire of rich people spending big money on religious galas, but that is not even the real subject of the picture.
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User Reviews

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User Score
5.3 out of 10

Mixed or average reviews- based on 11 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 9
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 9
  3. Negative: 4 out of 9
  1. NancyS.
    7
    I think my opinion runs to the first review listed here from "The Onion". It does lose its way from a satire to a family story but, since I really didn't have any expectations, I was okay with that. A satire about people who lack any sense of self-awareness in their amoral race to be on top? Watch "Thank You for Smoking" (which was well done but somewhat unsettling for me). The loss of direction here left Piven (and I am a fan of his intensity) with not a lot to work with but, overall, the actors were enjoyable to watch and the life lessons just this side of Hallmark Heartwarming. I think if they had stuck to the vision from the satiric first part of the film all the way through. it would have been more of what the viewers posting here would have enjoyed. On the other hand, if they had taken the time to develop some of the themes and issues that were brought up in the family story, they could have had something quite thoughtful and satisfying. The truncated scenes and TV-wrap-up did not provide any real depth. But, this is still something you could watch with your kids and talk about later...… Full Review »
  2. KenG.
    7
    This can occasionally get patronizing with "life lessons" on what's really important, but fortunately it doesn't do this too often, and otherwise there is a good bit of warmth, charm, and (mostly) well written and well-played characters here. I was suprised, based on the reviews I read, I wasn't expecting much.… Full Review »
  3. PeterH.
    10
    Having seen the trailer several times, I thought I had this movie figured out. I was wrong. But not disappointed. It was funny and fun.
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