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Mutual Appreciation
User Score
6.4 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 26 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 26
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 26
  3. Negative: 8 out of 26

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  1. ChadS.
    Apr 5, 2007
    8
    "Mutual Appreciation" never overstays its welcome, not when the writer/director has the uncanny knack of replicating how people really communicate with each other. They talk talk, not movie talk; the seemingly artless banter in "Mutual Appreciation" makes this no budget-film feel revolutionary, and its author, a maverick. These indie rock-informed post-grads have nothing in common with those nihilisitic tweens from Larry Clarke's "Kids", but both films convince you that the actors aren't reciting dialogue from a carefully worded script. Justin Rice, who plays Alan, the struggling artist(a Jonathan Richman-type informed by, perhaps, The Buzzcocks), and Rachel Clift, who plays Ellie(a plain Jane who grows more pulchritudinous before your very eyes with each passing scene) generate effortless good-will and exude more chemistry than any of those million-dollar actors that the studio-execs throw together in some banal romantic comedy. If Ellie followed her heart, she'd be with Alan, and not with his best friend, Lawrence(Andrew Bujalski, the New York-based writer/director who's more like Richard Linklater than Woody Allen), an equally nice guy with better career prospects, and most importantly, a job. Since "Mutual Appreciation" is about living in the moment, we never learn if Alan's music career will pan out, but if his knock-'em-dead, albeit poorly attended gig is any indication, Ellie should join The Bumblebees as a musician(she's already Alan's manager), and be a Claudia Gonson to his Stephin Merritt. Rice rocks with an indefatigable DIY spirit. "Mutual Appreciation" is a two-fisted, one-finger salute to both, corporate rock and Hollywood.… Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  2. JayC
    Oct 21, 2006
    3
    As the director said, he prepared scenes, but they kind of let the "actors" decide. For a movie that relies so extensively on dialogue, this one seemed to be mostly uncommunicative. Confused, disconnected and pretty boring. Why would we care about these people's lives?
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  3. EstebanI.
    May 12, 2007
    6
    Cringe-worthy and cute even if its superfluous. The main enjoyment I got out of it was Justin Rice's performance which is reminiscent of Henry Fonda in 'The Lady Eve'.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  4. JackJ
    Oct 24, 2006
    1
    This movie was terrible. None of the characters are interesting, and the film is basically a bunch of awkward conversations with nervous people. I suppose reviewers are calling this the future of film because it's honest and tries to be realistic. But how is this film daring? There have been many films about twenty-somethings who feel lost and aren't sure where they're going in life, or why they're dating who they're dating, and so on and so forth, but often they're funnier, have wittier dialogue (which would be more realistic anyways if you're trying to capture twenty-something hipsters), and manage to have more highs and lows. This movie left me completely under whelmed. Basically, if I grabbed a camera and filmed my friends conversing and figuring out life, I'd have a much funnier, wittier, and touching movie.… Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  5. MarcH.
    Sep 1, 2006
    10
    The filmmakers took a risk and again it proves that only when you take risks as a filmmaker you can create something outstanding.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  6. GregMorabito
    Sep 14, 2006
    1
    Like watching a hipster faucet drip for nearly two hours. Tedious.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  7. LukeJ.
    Sep 16, 2006
    10
    Very fresh, very funny, one of the best of the year. It's the sort of experience you just inhale and then it stays with you afterward. The music is good, the acting is fine, but it's really the dialogue and story that stick. Great storytelling, one of the realest feeling films I've ever seen. Bujalski is a rising star, and it's clear the critics agree.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  8. MattD.
    Feb 20, 2007
    6
    I guess I was kind of underwhelmed by this. I admit I was interested in it primarily because Justin Rice is in it and I really like his band Bishop Allen. So the highlight for me was the performance of "Quarter to Three". The movie is filled with conversations that are important to the people involved but kind of mundane to everyone else (or at least to me). I enjoyed watching it, but it didn't leave much of an impression.… Expand
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  9. TedM
    Oct 17, 2006
    8
    Greg is an angry boy. NO talent so all he can do is be critical of those who take a risk.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  10. MarkyMark
    Oct 18, 2006
    2
    Boring. Characters uninteresting, and story dull. I just couldn't get myself to care about the characters or the movie. Kind of pretentious, like the movie thinks it is more interesting than it actually is, and so has tricked other people into thinking that too...
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  11. PhilipD.
    Nov 21, 2006
    10
    This is a brilliant film.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
  12. RogerB.
    Dec 17, 2006
    1
    In one scene Ellie pulls down Lawrence's pant so Alan can see the mole on his ass that they are all discussing. When they showed a close up of his ass and Ellies face it look like boy and girl twins, both with warts. The most annoying movie I've ever seen. No redeming qualities.
    • 0 of 0 users said yes
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Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
84 out of 100

Universal acclaim - based on 21 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 21
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 21
  3. Negative: 0 out of 21
  1. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Jim Healy
    80
    One of Bujalski's gifts is his ability to give every part, no matter how big or small, a sense of intelligence and life that extends beyond the frame and running time, and in this his work recalls the best of both Mike Leigh and Richard Linklater.
    Read full review
  2. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: David Edelstein
    70
    That's a knock on ­Bujalski -- that his characters exist in a vacuum, with few references to popular culture or politics or much of anything, really. Of course, one artist's vacuum is another's poetic distillation, and there's something about Mutual Appreciation (which is shot in an unassuming black and white) that spoke more directly to my inner slacker than any film since, well, "Funny Ha Ha."
    Read full review
  3. Variety
    Reviewed by: Joe Leydon
    90
    If John Cassavetes had directed a script by Eric Rohmer, the result might have looked and sounded like Mutual Appreciation.
    Read full review
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