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The Opportunists
Metascore
71 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 24 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 6 out of 24
  3. Negative: 0 out of 24
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  1. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Amy Taubin
    90
    Filled with vivid and likable characters, The Opportunists could be the basis for a TV series as captivating as "The Sopranos."
  2. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kenneth Turan
    90
    A small gem.
  3. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Ernest Hardy
    80
    It's Walken who's most impressive.
  4. Film.com
    Reviewed by: Peter Brunette
    80
    A very small film, as they say in the movie business, but its stylish suspensefulness is nicely leavened by Connell's obvious, and welcome, love for his hapless characters.
  5. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: A.O. Scott
    80
    This is one of the best-photographed pictures of the year, but not ostentatiously so; the look is organic to the less-than-glamorous badlands of Sunnyside, Queens.
  6. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    75
    He (Walken) is a gifted classical actor...and here he understands Victor Kelly from the inside out.
  7. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Marc Caro
    75
    Contains ample dry humor and its share of surprising turns, but they operate on a human level rather than with the kind of empty flash we've come to expect from the post-Tarantino crime flicks.
  8. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Rene Rodriguez
    75
    The movie is small and familiar, but this time, those turn out to be strengths.
  9. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Jami Bernard
    75
    Enjoyable, intelligent little heist movie.
  10. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Lou Lumenick
    75
    Walken gives a beautifully understated performance.
  11. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Steven Rea
    75
    It's a character study, nicely realized.
  12. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Peter Stack
    75
    A brilliant performance (Walken).
  13. San Francisco Examiner
    Reviewed by: G. Allen Johnson
    75
    An engaging, well-written film that is surprisingly gentle in tone and easily paced.
  14. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Jay Carr
    75
    Goes soft in the end, but not ruinously so. Meanwhile, its loose cannons bounce off one another deliciously.
  15. Baltimore Sun
    Reviewed by: Chris Kaltenbach
    75
    Playing a perpetual victim like Victor (Walken) might be easy, but making audiences want to watch him for 97 minutes isn't.
  16. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Shawn Levy
    75
    Studded with sturdy acting.
  17. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Jonathan Rosenbaum
    70
    Fair amount of grit and charm.
  18. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marjorie Baumgarten
    67
    Not only are these characters beautifully underplayed, but they're underplayed by two of the most enthusiastic scene-stealers around: Walken & Lauper.
  19. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Maitland McDonagh
    60
    The plot isn't what makes this movie worth watching anyway -- it's the performances and the ambiance.
  20. Rolling Stone
    Reviewed by: Peter Travers
    60
    Modestly made and modestly charming.
    All this critic's reviews
  21. Mr. Showbiz
    Reviewed by: Kevin Maynard
    58
    It's amiable enough, but the only real opportunity here is to see Walken step out of the shadows.
  22. Entertainment Weekly
    Reviewed by: Owen Gleiberman
    58
    Skillfully made, yet the film would have been better if it had tapped a bit of that Walken madness.
  23. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: William Arnold
    58
    Ultimately emotionally flat and eminently forgettable.
  24. Dallas Observer
    Reviewed by: Gregory Weinkauf
    50
    Once Connell finds his feet, he just may stride forth with his Important American Movie. Until then, The Opportunists is simply a whiff of great unwashedness yet to come.
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