The Battle of Shaker Heights
Metascore
33 out of 100

Generally unfavorable reviews - based on 22 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 22
  3. Negative: 8 out of 22
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  1. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Elizabeth Weitzman
    63
    Surprisingly sweet and smart... LaBeouf does an excellent job, and the talented Beeney is one to watch.
  2. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Angel Cohn
    60
    LaBeouf somehow manages to turn Kelly's self-centered behavior and irritating character quirks into a sympathetic lead, and the well-written script by newcomer Erica Beeney brings a lot of humor to some very touching moments.
  3. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Frank Scheck
    50
    Another heartfelt coming-of-age story that plays much more like a television movie than a theatrical feature.
  4. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    50
    Isn't bad so much as jumbled...You get the sense of too much input, too many bright ideas, too many scenes that don't belong in the same movie.
  5. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Allison Benedikt
    50
    Painfully blasé coming-of-age story.
  6. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Lou Lumenick
    50
    Directors Potelle and Rankin lack the skill to integrate the sometimes drastic shifts between comedy and drama - and the serious portions ultimately get short shrift, apparently at the behest of Miramax's marketing executives.
  7. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Steven Rea
    50
    If that sounds a lot like Rushmore, it is, except that the heart has been sucked out of the thing -- replaced by glib chatter, gratuitous Baudelaire references, and distracting product placement.
  8. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Ty Burr
    50
    In a better movie -- a much better movie -- LaBeouf might make the same sort of impact Dustin Hoffman did in ''The Graduate.'' But the kid's young. There are movies to come.
  9. Premiere
    Reviewed by: Aaron Hillis
    50
    The dubious whimsy, devoid of any directorial voice, plays more like a very special episode of Dawson’s Creek.
  10. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Owen Gleiberman
    50
    Best to experience Shaker Heights for what it is: not a movie, exactly, but the true season capper of ''Project Greenlight,'' a series that finds its very drama on the road to mediocrity.
  11. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Sean Axmaker
    50
    If there is a delicate story of forgiveness, friendship and family buried somewhere in Erica Beeney's script, Potelle and Rankin haven't managed to find it under the throes of empty rebellion and painless triumph.
  12. Salon.com
    Reviewed by: Heather Havrilesky
    50
    The nice thing about seeing so much time, money and effort go into a bland film is that it makes you appreciate truly inspired filmmaking even more.
  13. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ron Stringer
    50
    While decidedly green, at least isn't mealy or tasteless. And if the juice in tyro screenwriter Erica Beeney's witty dialogue can't quite flow through the hard tissue of underripe gimmicks and derivative set pieces, there's enough sweetness in the performances, and tautness in the direction (by Efram Potelle and Kyle Rankin), to forestall any serious bellyaching.
  14. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Michael Atkinson
    50
    The characters talk like smart, unpredictable people, and Kelly Ernswiler is one of a kind.
  15. Dallas Observer
    Reviewed by: Luke Y. Thompson
    30
    LaBeouf's got the beef, and his inevitably bright future may be the only reason anyone will ever look back on The Battle of Shaker Heights.
  16. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kenneth Turan
    30
    The best thing that can be said about this lethargic coming-of-age tale, noticeably undernourished at 78 minutes, is that it's better than the even more pathetic "Stolen Summer."
  17. Variety
    Reviewed by: Robert Koehler
    30
    Although Erica Beeney's script beat out more than 7,000 entries, the screen version dulls her potentially distinctive voice with deadly doses of sentimentality.
  18. Wall Street Journal
    Reviewed by: Joe Morgenstern
    30
    Goes down fighting, but it goes down just the same.
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  19. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Ruthe Stein
    25
    Dispiriting mess. The movie is bad in a boring way: tepidly paced, disjointed and lacking any emotional hook.
  20. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: A.O. Scott
    20
    May lead to a new axiom: success has many fathers, but failure has "Project Greenlight."
  21. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Desson Thomson
    10
    Brain-numbingly innocuous, cliche-soused melodrama.
  22. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Stephen Hunter
    10
    An insufferable piffle.

User Reviews

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User Score
5.4 out of 10

Mixed or average reviews- based on 18 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 8
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 8
  3. Negative: 3 out of 8
  1. TipsyMcBee
    3
    If you had watched season two of Project Greenlight in making The Battle of Shaker's Height, then you're definitely going to see the many flaws within this film. Some of the performances were convincing like Amy and Shia's roles, but overall the film felt clunky and completely boring. This was a pretty forgettable movie and it's a shame that an original plot like this had to turn into a TV quality like movie.… Full Review »
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