Wagner & Me
Metascore
56 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 10 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 3 out of 10
  2. Mixed: 7 out of 10
  3. Negative: 0 out of 10
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  1. NPR
    Reviewed by: Stephanie Zacharek
    Dec 7, 2012
    80
    Somehow, without soft-pedaling the nastier angles of Wagner's life and legacy, Wagner & Me lands on the side of joy and defiance - broadly speaking, Fry decides not to let the terrorists win.
  2. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Farran Smith Nehme
    Dec 7, 2012
    75
    In addition to the magnificent music, the movie takes its rumpled charm from Fry's unfeigned fanboy manner.
  3. Slant Magazine
    Reviewed by: Joseph Jon Lanthier
    Dec 4, 2012
    63
    Even when Wagner & Me seems uneven as an art historical study, it's fairly successful as a travelogue.
  4. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Frank Scheck
    Dec 7, 2012
    60
    Patrick McGrady's documentary strains to reconcile its conflicting moods, but Fry's gushing enthusiasm for the subject is ultimately if sometimes queasily infectious.
  5. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Andy Webster
    Dec 6, 2012
    60
    In the documentary Wagner & Me, the actor Stephen Fry, an ardent admirer of the music of Richard Wagner, wrestles with a longstanding problem for Wagner fans: how to reconcile that composer's musical genius with his racism.
  6. Variety
    Reviewed by: Ronnie Scheib
    Dec 6, 2012
    60
    For Fry, the music's complexity, ambiguity, innovation and humanity far surpass Wagner's personal limitations. He may not convince his viewers of the rightness of his conclusions, but he certainly makes a fervent case for the triumph of art over biography.
  7. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Alan Scherstuhl
    Dec 4, 2012
    60
    Most of the time, though, Fry is an unabashed appreciator. He paws at costumes, thrills to touch Wagner's own piano, and looks right at the camera to apologize for being so excited. It's the light, charming touch absent in Wagner - and proof that both of the famous men referred to in the title benefit from each other's association.
  8. Boston Globe
    Reviewed by: Ty Burr
    Dec 13, 2012
    50
    To truly appreciate Wagner & Me, a BBC documentary getting a spotty theatrical release in this country, you have to cherish the music of Richard Wagner with the same quivering intensity as host Stephen Fry.
  9. The A.V. Club
    Reviewed by: Alison Willmore
    Dec 5, 2012
    50
    Fry is Jewish, and his wrestling with what it means to venerate the music of someone who wrote of his revulsion for Jews adds a fascinating personal angle to this otherwise dry film.
  10. Time Out New York
    Reviewed by: Andrew Schenker
    Dec 4, 2012
    40
    While the documentary offers some insights into the pervertion of art for ideological purposes, too much of it simply finds Fry standing in dumbfounded awe of the holy sites that populate his journey.

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