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Quinceañera
Metascore
72 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 31 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 31
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 31
  3. Negative: 0 out of 31
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  1. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Ruthe Stein
    100
    Glatzer and Westmoreland live in Echo Park, and they have given their film a remarkable sense of place.
  2. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Ken Fox
    100
    One of the most perceptive movies about the gentrification of Los Angeles.
  3. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marrit Ingman
    89
    The film is a wonderful choice for older teens and has considerable crossover appeal for adult audiences.
  4. Premiere
    Reviewed by: Peter Debruge
    88
    On the surface, each of these characters fits a familiar Latino stereotype--teen harlot, "el bandido" and male buffoon--yet the movie insists on giving each person dimension.
  5. Christian Science Monitor
    Reviewed by: Peter Rainer
    83
    Despite much of the turmoil depicted, there is a sweetness to parts of this film that is reminiscent of the 1961 British movie "A Taste of Honey."
  6. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Shawn Levy
    83
    A sweet and wise little film.
  7. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Gianni Truzzi
    83
    What Quinceañera does offer is charm, sensitivity and intelligence.
  8. Film Threat
    Reviewed by: Don R. Lewis
    80
    A pretty great little movie.
  9. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Stephen Holden
    80
    As smart and warmhearted an exploration of an upwardly mobile immigrant culture as American independent cinema has produced.
  10. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Jessica Reaves
    75
    Quinceanera took both the dramatic Grand Jury Prize and the Audience Award at this year's Sundance Film Festival, and it's easy to see why.
  11. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Rene Rodriguez
    75
    Using a semi-documentary approach, Glatzer and Westmoreland circumvent the considerable potential for sentimentality inherent in their story, instead taking a frank and direct approach to kids who, while far from hardened, are nowhere near innocent, either.
  12. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Carrie Rickey
    75
    The film is suffused with the generous, nonjudgmental spirit of Uncle Tomas, whose live-and-let-live attitude warms like the sun and who helps Magdalena and Carlos make the safe passage from adolescence to maturity.
  13. USA Today
    Reviewed by: Claudia Puig
    75
    Quinceañera is a spirited and poignant exploration of the bonds and challenges facing a Latino family and the pains of a community undergoing a transition of its own.
  14. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Wesley Morris
    75
    At its core, Quinceañera, a modest but remarkably poignant comedy, is the story of a neighborhood.
  15. Baltimore Sun
    Reviewed by: Chris Kaltenbach
    75
    Quinceanera may be the year's most nonjudgmental film, and therein lies both its greatest strength and most naggingly troublesome weakness.
  16. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Nathan Rabin
    75
    Quinceañera sketches its characters and conflicts with warmth and empathy.
  17. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: James Greenberg
    70
    Life-affirming without being saccharine and enormously entertaining, film could be one of those rare specialty pictures that crossover to a mainstream audience.
  18. Salon.com
    Reviewed by: Andrew O'Hehir
    70
    It's an engaging, sweet-yet-sad neighborhood slice of life, anchored by pretty cinematography and a couple of nice performances.
  19. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Ella Taylor
    70
    Saucy, rowdy, heartfelt, and terribly sweet movie.
  20. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Thomas
    70
    As sweet and gentle as it is, Quinceañera is quite clear-eyed about human cruelty and indifference. In structure, however, there is a circularity to the film that allows it to end on a well-earned upbeat note.
  21. Slate
    Reviewed by: Dana Stevens
    70
    Quinceañera is a rare bird of an indie, a sharp-eyed analysis of class conflict that still manages to leave you as choked up as a proud auntie on her niece's 15th birthday.
  22. Variety
    Reviewed by: David Rooney
    70
    This is a fresh, spirited drama, charming and unpretentious. It mines a similar vein to recent Latino-themed pics such as "Raising Victor Vargas" and "Real Women Have Curves."
  23. Wall Street Journal
    Reviewed by: Joe Morgenstern
    70
    The whole thing comes together surprisingly well, as a celebration of its own milieu, and of a tender teen's transformation into a strong young woman.
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  24. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Stephen Hunter
    70
    It's not fierce, it's not angry, it's not radical, it's polite and what might be called "life-affirming." But it does have a couple of attributes most movies don't.
  25. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Jonathan Rosenbaum
    70
    Despite some awkwardness, this feature by writer-directors Richard Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland is a fascinating look at the area's Mexican-American milieu and other local subcultures, full of feeling, insight, and touching performances.
  26. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Elizabeth Weitzman
    63
    A natural crowd-pleaser, this year's big Sundance award winner is both overly familiar and surprisingly fresh.
  27. New York Post
    Reviewed by: V.A. Musetto
    63
    Quinceañera isn't a work of art, nor does it want to be. But it is a crowd-pleaser.
  28. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
    Reviewed by: Rick Groen
    63
    It's all such a throwback, and yet there's something rather sweet about the way this pot boils.
  29. Empire
    Reviewed by: Kim Newman
    60
    Refreshingly free of the gangs, guns and drugs clichés associated with the milieu, this is a satisfying, spicy little picture.
  30. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: David Edelstein
    60
    The movie does a good job of capturing how ostracism and liberation are sides of the same spinning coin.
  31. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Lisa Schwarzbaum
    50
    Tthis isn't just any setup, is it: It's suds being sold as ethno-sensitive reality, a case of coveting thy neighbor's fiesta.
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User Reviews

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User Score
8.0 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 21 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 10 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 11
  3. Negative: 1 out of 11
  1. ArmondA.
    7
    If there's one thing I hate it's a sappy, manipulative, feel-good-and-bring-the-tissues movie that makes conservative, church-going, anti-gay, abstinence-only, folks swell with self-satisfaction. This little movie-confection is as sweet for the rest of us. While it breaks no ground in technique or narrative, it contains a number of small surprises, particularly in its division of white hats and black hats among the various ethnic and social groups that form the fabric of the story. Perhaps this is the new century's version of William Saroyan's Human Comedy.… Full Review »
  2. NancyH
    8
    This movie grows on you. The supporting actors were obviously homegrown and the film had that flavor. But the story, humor and humanity carry this film thru. Give Emily Rios a few more years but Jesse Garcia is ready now. The actor who played Tio was the best--fabulous heart, voice, and humanity. It's amazing to see LA in this light--submerged in a subculture of Mexico. A very enjoyable film.… Full Review »
  3. PaulK.
    8
    The premise of the film was original and interesting. The lead actors, particularly Emily Rios and Jesse Garcia firmly anchored this, despite the questionable acting ability of some of the supporting cast and the need for tighter editing. Still, Quinceanera is worth seeing in the theater, or on video.… Full Review »
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