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Mercy
Metascore
46 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 11 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 11
  3. Negative: 0 out of 11
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  1. Variety
    Reviewed by: Justin Chang
    80
    Its modesty is what makes its very real virtues -- a tart, literate script, an adroit balance of humor and pathos, a memorable onscreen collaboration between star-scribe Scott Caan and his father James -- so cumulatively impressive.
  2. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    50
    What's lacking is a little more depth. This is a movie that covers a lot of distance in only 87 minutes.
  3. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Lou Lumenick
    50
    Despite risible dialogue, Mercy is watchable because of Caan's physical presence -- and a couple of scenes with his real-life father, James Caan, as his cynical dad who pronounces that "love -- it does not exist."
  4. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Joe Neumaier
    50
    In a certain kind of indie movie, the only thing sweeter than a bad boy transformed is slow, sad tragedy. Mercy has both, which isn't good.
  5. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Karina Longworth
    50
    At the risk that giving Scott Caan a bad review will cause him to fall in love with me, I must note the irony in a film that seeks to critique superficiality, only to fall back on the old "dead fiancées deepen dipshits" trick.
  6. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Stephen Holden
    50
    Had John Cassavetes directed "Love Story," it might have turned out looking and sounding something like Mercy, a portrait of a sub-Mailer-like literary pugilist and the woman (named Mercy) who wins his heart. Odd as that juxtaposition may seem, it's not a bad mix.
  7. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: J.R. Jones
    50
    The end is swollen with macho brooding before the hero finds the inner strength to accept the advances of another incredible dish.
  8. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Nathan Rabin
    50
    With Glenn offscreen for huge sections of the film, Mercy devolves into yet another navel-gazing drama about a glib cad redeemed by the love of a good woman.
  9. Time Out New York
    Reviewed by: David Fear
    40
    Caan can't seem to play up his strengths. He's a raw talent who needs an editor for his scripts and a strong hand behind the camera guiding him. Mercy gives our guy neither.
  10. Boxoffice Magazine
    Reviewed by: John P. McCarthy
    40
    Mercy can be described as a moody picture that traffics in variations of only one mood or sentiment: self-pity.
  11. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Michael Ordona
    40
    A romantic drama with some good qualities -- among them earnestness and strong performances -- but not enough to completely overcome the strain of its clichés.
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