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The Way Home
Metascore
63 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 19 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 19
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 19
  3. Negative: 0 out of 19
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  1. Seattle Post-Intelligencer
    Reviewed by: Ellen A. Kim
    91
    It's an uncluttered, resonant gem that relays its universal points without lectures or confrontations.
  2. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: Jami Bernard
    88
    Life-affirming story of love, kinship and sacrifice.
  3. Philadelphia Inquirer
    Reviewed by: Steven Rea
    88
    Charming is such an overused, film critic-y designation, but The Way Home is that, and more.
  4. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Michael O'Sullivan
    80
    Simple without being slight, and profoundly moving without dipping into mawkishness.
  5. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: J.R. Jones
    80
    The plot of the picture is familiar, but it's realized with such delicacy and affection for the characters that it seems as fresh and warm as its verdant setting.
  6. Chicago Tribune
    Reviewed by: Michael Wilmington
    75
    Director Lee has a true cinematic knack, but it's also nice to see a movie with its heart so thoroughly, unabashedly on its sleeve.
  7. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Edward Guthmann
    75
    A sweet, unabashedly sentimental tale.
  8. The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
    Reviewed by: Rick Groen
    75
    If you ever doubted the power and scope of silent film, watch The Way Home. The narrative arc is as broad as any chattering feature, the emotional depth is greater than most, and it's all achieved with virtually no dialogue.
  9. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Thomas
    70
    Has inherent sentimental appeal, but Lee balances it with considerable humor and an unblinking eye toward the realities of a primitive way of life.
  10. Variety
    Reviewed by: Derek Elley
    70
    Utterly unsentimental but profoundly moving,The Way Home" is a tiny gem from South Korea.
  11. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Marta Barber
    63
    The film has good actors and enough quirky moments to keep it interesting.
  12. New York Post
    Reviewed by: V.A. Musetto
    63
    The film is worth watching if only for Kim, who before this had never seen a movie, let alone acted in one.
  13. Film Threat
    Reviewed by: Darrin Keene
    60
    It’s not hard to see why The Way Home has become such a hit in its native South Korea. The story is a plaintive moral tale, adding the requisite doses of humour and sentimentality where it’s required.
  14. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Paul Malcolm
    60
    A conventional if appealing tear-jerker, The Way Home would like to grandmother us all.
  15. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Dana Stevens
    60
    The story, touching though it is, does not quite have enough emotional resonance or variety of incident to sustain a feature, and even at 85 minutes it feels a bit long. The premise, too, is a little thin.
  16. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Kim Morgan
    58
    There are many merits to the picture -- it's wonderfully shot and boasts a beautiful performance by Eul-Boom, who acts in gestures of subtle dignity and compassion. But it's questionable how we're to take actor Seung-Ho.
  17. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Steve Davis
    50
    There’s also something to be said for wanting a little bit more.
  18. Wall Street Journal
    Reviewed by: Joe Morgenstern
    50
    Affecting, even touching, provided you can put up with its sclerotic pace.
    All this critic's reviews
  19. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Scott Tobias
    40
    It's telling that this slice of milquetoast is the first to get picked up by a major studio boutique. Put in the most euphemistic terms possible, the film's banal premise contains "universal themes," meaning that its sentimental clichés translate readily to all continents and cultures.
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