Law Abiding Citizen
Metascore
34 out of 100

Generally unfavorable reviews - based on 26 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 26
  3. Negative: 12 out of 26
view
per page
  1. Rolling Stone
    Reviewed by: Peter Travers
    38
    Jeez, did the "surprise" climax have to be this eye-rollingly stupid?
  2. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Joe Neumaier
    30
    Such a lazy action-drama underachiever, it seems unfair to target stars Jamie Foxx and Gerard Butler for bringing their C game.
  3. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Robert Wilonsky
    30
    If the filmmakers meant a word of it, they'd quit making films and do something more useful. "Saw" with a conscience is not what the world needs.
  4. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: A.O. Scott
    30
    Wears its preposterousness with a certain pride. It’s about the cat-and-mouse game between two very smart guys, and it’s perfectly happy to be as dumb as it wants.
  5. Time
    Reviewed by: Richard Corliss
    30
    Butler has the showier part, but his impersonation of the tragic hero is undercut by his weird resemblance to Soupy Sales. You start hoping that Shelton will kill somebody with a custard (or puffer-fish) pie to the face.
  6. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Dan Kois
    30
    A movie devoted to baroque revenge would be, on its own terms, acceptable; what makes Law Abiding Citizen so risible is its humorless conviction that it's got Big Ideas at its core.
  7. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Cliff Doerksen
    30
    Generally I don’t mind a little recreational fascism as long as it’s deep-fried in savory violent vengeance, but this overwrought mess gives vigilantism a bad name.
  8. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Kyle Smith
    25
    At last, the missing link be tween "Phantom of the Opera" and "Saw." Welcome to the gonzo revenge saga Law Abiding Citizen.
  9. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Amy Biancolli
    25
    Vigilante movies hold a firm place in cinematic history, but for them to work, the vigilante needs to be a sympathetic anti-hero.
  10. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Wesley Morris
    25
    Like a lot of action-movie directors, Gray lacks the imagination to view the art of cat-and-mouse as more than a chance to play with state-of-the-art war technology.
  11. St. Louis Post-Dispatch
    Reviewed by: Joe Williams
    25
    A vigilante/torture-porn potpourri, is particularly toxic because it's scented with phony importance.
  12. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Scott Tobias
    25
    A flagrantly ridiculous thriller that tries to retrofit "Saw" to function as a mainstream, semi-respectable vigilante picture

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
6.4 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 171 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 50 out of 86
  2. Mixed: 15 out of 86
  3. Negative: 21 out of 86
  1. spadenx
    2
    Its so generic, straight forward, and predictable that it ruins the movie. Jamie Foxx is a terrible lead as well, The rest of the cast was ok. Gerald Butler is good though and the only reason to watch the film. The action was ok as well but the entire script was just terrible. A lot of ruined potential here.… Full Review »
  2. grandpajoe6191
    7
    The movie ends with a pretty cliche on top, but its the first 30 minutes of "Law Abiding Citizen" with the tension between Butler and Foxx that will entertain you.… Full Review »
  3. sLm
    3
    Meeeeeeeh... It started very, very good, at first revenge was justified, but then it just became into a non-sense murdering. At the end of the film, all I wanted was the "bad" guy to win at least, not the moron lawyer, but neither that happened. It was totally anticlimactic... Seriously, if you want a good version for this movie, watch "V for Vendetta" and stay away from this.… Full Review »
See all user reviews »