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Chasing Liberty
Warner Bros.
MPAA RATING: PG-13 for sexual content and brief nudity
Starring
Mandy Moore,
Matthew Goode,
Mark Harmon,
Jeremy Piven,
Annabella Sciorra,
Miriam Margolyes,
Sam Ellis,
and
Caroline Goodall
Fed up with being followed around every moment of every day, the 18-year-old daughter (Moore) of the president (Harmon) of the United States evades her Secret Service handlers (Piven, Sciorra) to begin a romantic road trip through Europe.
| GENRE(S): |
Comedy
|
Romance
|
| WRITTEN BY: |
Derek Guiley
David Schneiderman
|
| DIRECTED BY: |
Andy Cadiff
|
| RELEASE DATE: |
DVD: May 4, 2004
Video: May 4, 2004
Theatrical: January 9, 2004
|
| RUNNING TIME: |
100 minutes, Color |
| ORIGIN: |
USA / UK |
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
75
Chicago Tribune
Robert K. Elder
As it turns out, "Liberty," a likable, light-as-air road comedy, is a much better movie than its sour-pun title.
75
San Francisco Chronicle
Mick LaSalle
What's immediately apparent -- and refreshing -- about Chasing Liberty is that it doesn't play cute with its premise.
70
Variety
Scott Foundas
Inoffensive adolescent escapism laced with surprising amounts of genuine charm.
70
Washington Post
Michael O'Sullivan
Will probably win over as many fuddy-duddy fathers as fillies with its mixture of sweetness tempered with genial cynicism.
63
Philadelphia Inquirer
Steven Rea
Boasts exceedingly high levels of improbability and an embarrassment of continuity and character shortfalls, but still has a certain bubbleheaded charm.
63
ReelViews
James Berardinelli
Chasing Liberty is not daring or adventurous, but, considering its release date (early January), it's more palatable than one might anticipate.
63
Baltimore Sun
Chris Kaltenbach
Lighthearted fluff, not piercing drama. Still, a little shot of reality -- or at least an acknowledgement of same -- could have done this film wonders.
60
The Hollywood Reporter
Kirk Honeycutt
Chases romance and comedy across Europe for nearly two hours without ever quite catching either. Essentially a teenage rendition of William Wyler's immortal "Roman Holiday."
60
Los Angeles Times
Kevin Thomas
The film means to be an unpretentious, engaging romantic comedy but stretches its charm awfully thin with a 110-minute running time.
58
Entertainment Weekly
Lisa Schwarzbaum
At least some Goode may come from Chasing Liberty: I hope we'll be seeing more of the handsome and unboyish young man with big star potential who looks ready to take on more, not Moore.
58
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Sean Axmaker
The movie's a little thin for the two-hour running time, but likable enough for its schoolgirl audience and painless enough for the adults doomed to be dragged along.
50
USA Today
Claudia Puig
It's an innocuous, occasionally cute movie made watchable by the appealing Mandy Moore and hunky Matthew Goode, a Brit who has a bit of Hugh Grant charm in an otherwise silly role.
50
Chicago Reader
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Jeremy Piven and Annabella Sciorra exert some charm as bodyguards tracking the couple; Mark Harmon and Caroline Goodall are OK as the heroine's parents. Andy Cadiff directed Derek Guiley and David Schneiderman's by-the-numbers script.
50
Boston Globe
Wesley Morris
It's one TV-movie romp that Kristy McNichol never got around to starring in.
50
Chicago Sun-Times
Roger Ebert
Surprisingly good in areas where it doesn't need to be good at all, and pretty awful in areas where it has to succeed.
50
New York Post
Megan Lehmann
Light, doggedly formulaic romantic comedy that's almost instantly forgettable despite the sunny presence of teen queen Mandy Moore.
50
The Onion (A.V. Club)
Scott Tobias
On record and in her movies, Moore is sold as wholesome and real, which sometimes translates as generic and blah, in spite of her genuine appeal and accessibility.
50
Village Voice
Laura Sinagra
Moore's lip-glossed petulance never catches fire with Goode's canned drollery.
50
Salon.com
Charles Taylor
The kind of bland, perky comedy that neuters whoever is spun into its cotton-candy web.
50
Dallas Observer
Robert Wilonsky
Moore's likable and Goode's good. But . . . so what?
50
LA Weekly
Chuck Wilson
The movie's saving grace is newcomer Goode, who has what they used to call smoldering good looks, and who can, not so incidentally, actually act.
50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
Rick Groen
It can be accurately described as a loud soundtrack occasionally punctuated by the faint vestige of a plot. Or as a lush travelogue that sometimes gives way to sporadic bursts of chirping dialogue.
50
TV Guide
Angel Cohn
The bizarrely entertaining relationship that blossoms between Sciorra and Piven is far more amusing and convincing, which only underscores the lack of chemistry between the dewy leads.
50
Christian Science Monitor
David Sterritt
May find some fans among female teens. But even they may decide the project cares more about quick profits than real entertainment value, since the signs are hard to miss.
40
Austin Chronicle
Kimberley Jones
Their travelogue-ready romance is utterly doofy but not disagreeable, and this sort of wish-fulfillment fantasy will strike the right chord with Moore’s fan base of preteen girls.
40
Wall Street Journal
Joe Morgenstern
A not-bad idea lurks inside this insipid story.
40
The New York Times
A.O. Scott
The lack of narrative sophistication allows an Ecstasy-like disposition to set in; "Liberty" becomes goo-goo eyed over itself. It lacks the discipline to define Anna sufficiently; rather, it portrays her as either a lovable naïf or a spoiled narcissist in desperate need of a lesson.
38
Premiere
Kelly Borgeson
The whole film, in fact, feels slapped together and unfocused. Though the movie’s too dopey for anyone older than ten, there are scenes where characters drink and go skinny-dipping.
30
Washington Post
Ann Hornaday
An endless, virtually laugh-free pastiche of Aaron Sorkin by way of Aaron Spelling, Chasing Liberty features Mandy Moore trying so strenuously to be the next America's Sweetheart that she almost pops a vein.
25
Rolling Stone
Peter Travers
Lacks the active verb it promises. It defines blah.
25
New York Daily News
Jami Bernard
The screenwriters claim they got the idea for this dreary thing by glimpsing a besieged Chelsea Clinton in the stands at a basketball game.
25
Miami Herald
Connie Ogle
The film does provide some nice shots of Venice and offers one solid reason to display a little patriotic fervor: We do have the freedom to avoid such rote, shallow dullness.
 The average user rating for this movie is 8.1 (out of 10) based on 7 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
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