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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

In the Bedroom
Miramax Films


7.4

based on 31 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 61 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

FILM:

Little Children

MPAA RATING: R for some violence and language

Starring Tom Wilkinson, Sissy Spacek, Nick Stahl, William Mapother, Marisa Tomei, and William Wise

Set in a tranquil town on the coast of Maine, In the Bedroom tells the story of a couple (Spacek, Wilkinson) whose only child is involved in a love affair with a single mother (Tomei). When the relationship comes to a sudden and tragic end, each person must face the intensely difficult decision of how to respond. (Miramax)

GENRE(S):	Drama
WRITTEN BY:	Robert Festinger Todd Field Andre Dubus (short story Killings)
DIRECTED BY:	Todd Field
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: August 13, 2002 Video: August 13, 2002 Theatrical: November 23, 2001
RUNNING TIME:	131 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

Nominated for five Oscars in 2002, including Best Picture, Best Actress (Sissy Spacek), Best Actor (Tom Wilkinson), and Best Adapted Screenplay. Named Best Picture of 2001 by the Los Angeles Critics Association. Picked up three Golden Globe nominations, including one winner: Best Actress (Spacek). Special Jury Prize for Spacek and Wilkinson, 2001 Sundance Film Festival; Satyajit Ray Award, 2001 London Film Festival.

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...

100

Boston Globe Jay Carr

The surehandedly wrought, beautifully acted, almost unbearably tense In the Bedroom is a rare film, not to be missed.

100

Newsweek David Ansen

The compositions, the editing, the lighting, the sound, the music: everything seems meticulously considered, conjuring up a hushed intimacy that instantly sucks you in.

100

Slate David Edelstein

The best movie of the last several years: the most evocative, the most mysterious, the most inconsolably devastating.

100

The New York Times Stephen Holden

When a film as profoundly quiet as In the Bedroom comes along, it feels almost miraculous, as if a shimmering piece of art had slipped below the radar and through the minefield of commerce.

100

San Francisco Chronicle Edward Guthmann

A lot of actors are labeled "brave" for taking on difficult scripts like this, but Spacek is the real thing: an artist first, without vanity, and a movie star almost by default.

100

Philadelphia Inquirer Desmond Ryan

When it comes to the realistic portrayal of the complex process of grief, most actresses are at a loss. Sissy Spacek is decidedly not most actresses.

100

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

With performances that will raise the hairs on the back of your head, it's a film that knows the private geography of love, grief and obsession.

100

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

The uncoagulated anguish of parents mourning the death of a child has rarely been more powerfully depicted than in the collected vignettes of grief, rage, and retribution that make up the riveting domestic drama In the Bedroom.

100

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

There are scenes as true as movies can make them, and even when the story develops thriller elements, they are redeemed, because the movie isn't about what happens, but about why.

100

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

The kind of movie they don't make any more -- a seriously beautiful, deliberately paced drama that meanders for a while at the pace of a summer romance, then explodes with phenomenal force.

100

Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy

Demanding, harrowing and very, very real. You won't shake its impact easily.

100

The New Yorker David Denby

Field achieves so convincing a picture of everday normality that when violence breaks out one feels the same disbelief that one feels when it breaks out in life. [26 Nov 2001, p. 121]

Salon.com Andrew O'Hehir

For all its flaws, In the Bedroom is an unusual accomplishment, a serious drama about violence and morality that plays out with a fatalistic intensity somewhere between Greek tragedy and film noir.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

An uncommonly good movie - a thriller that transcends thrills to become a heartfelt and heart-stopping personal drama.

Austin Chronicle Kimberley Jones

The actors, as a powerful and convincing ensemble, are equally understated and just as devastating.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

Field does what most American directors don't: He shows people at work, in the day-to-day activity unmarked by excitement.

USA Today Mike Clark

Bedroom succeeds with performances that get some of their power from imaginative casting.

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

It sneaks up on you and shakes you: a tale of the cold hell surging up beneath that windy, sensuous Wyeth landscape.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

Tremendously affecting on several levels, In the Bedroom is must-see viewing for anyone who complains Hollywood doesn't make movies for grownups.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

Like Kubrick, Field doesn't make any moral judgments about his characters, and his film remains stubbornly enigmatic. It can be read as a high-class revenge thriller, an ode to the futility of vengeance or almost anything in between.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

Meticulously observed and devastatingly well-acted.

LA Weekly Ella Taylor

Goes the distance to avoid banalizing the dilemma of a reasonable couple unhinged by unreasonable events.

New Times (L.A.) Robert Wilonsky

If Dubus' work always resembled some sort of literary therapy session, as has often been said, then Field's version requires grief counseling. It is, at times, that devastating.

Variety Todd McCarthy

Beautifully acted by a diverse ensemble, this Good Machine production is carefully crafted and deliberately paced.

New York Magazine Peter Rainer

Field made a thriller about what we are capable of in the name of hatred -- and of love.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

It's a human drama, drawn in such careful emotional detail, its two acts of violence -- one shown, one not -- are almost incidental.

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

Directed by newcomer Todd Field, who has a sensitive eye and a knack for storytelling.

Film Threat Tim Merrill

A courageous film, especially from a first-time director, and deserves all the audience support it can attract. It’s a People Story, and it’s About Something. However, it’s also something of a heavy sit.

Washington Post Stephen Hunter

Short of good, better than awful, it opens brilliantly, then just goes on, toward self-negating absurdity.

Chicago Reader Ronnie Scheib

A killer ending does not a movie make, and ultimately In the Bedroom may be more interesting to talk about than sit through.

Village Voice J. Hoberman

Increasingly unconvincing, In the Bedroom turns genteel rabble-rouser. Field's leisurely buildup forestalls but doesn't prevent his movie's mutation into a granola "Death Wish."

The average user rating for this movie is 7.4 (out of 10) based on 61 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Creedence B. gave it a10:
just from scanning the shown critic's lowest ratings(and i'm sure they are in the minority), i really wonder, just what is a good film to so-called 'critics'.....the acting was superb, the directing very.....life-like is the only way i can describe it........and the story so heart-wrenching, i wonder how anyone could not be moved by this comment on society in the most genuine and well-rounded view of death of a loved one (in this case murder) that i have ever seen.

dave z gave it a10:
I bought this used before knowing anything about the film from blockbuster. What a great choice! This movie stirs the soul. I think we can all relate to at least 1 if not all the main characters involved. The villain is unclear... it seems as all the characters hold some form of evil inside of them whether it be by neglect, indifference, anger or revenge. This movie will no doubt leave you with the same kind of gratification that one had gotten from hearing that Hitler committed suicide before serving justice.

Paolo A gave it a10:
Good.

J. Ryan G. gave it a6:
Doesn't seem to age very well. I remember being strongly affected by the film immediately upon seeing it. I also remember doing an awful lot of work to conjure up those feelings. The film didn't necessarily drag them out of me. And so, as years go by, and after seeing it once or twice more, it seems quite unremarkable. I still like Marisa Tomei a lot in this role, but I have become especially frustrated at Sissy Spacek's rather dull performance.

Joe A. gave it a10:
Movies don't get much better than this. Reality is always more interesting than fiction, and this is life imitating art.

Michael M. gave it a 10:
Without a doubt, One of the finest movies ever made! This movie is such an excellent film. It is a tiny bit slow at parts, but isn't every movie? The acting is what really makes this movie so great. The story is about a New England couple, Matt (Tom Wilkinson) and Ruth (Sissy Spacek) Fowler who both deal with the loss of their son Frank (Nick Stahl), who was murdered by his older girlfriend's (Marissa Tomei) ex-husband (William Mapother). After the killer gets set loose due to lack of evidence, they both can't believe it. With anger they even start blaming each other. The mother chooses to not only blame Frank's girlfriend but her husband Matt also. This is an excellent movie not only good for drama fans but for others. Sissy Spacek is beyond fantastic in her role, while Marissa Tomei is very good also. I would have to say the best performance in the whole movie is Tom Wilkinson's absolutley compelling and riveting performance that should (but of course didn't) win him the Oscar for Best Actor. Denzel Washington was the most popular, that's why he won the award. It was also politcally correct at the time. If you haven't already watch this film. It is very depressing so make sure to have a tissue box with you. Tom Wilkinson and Sissy Spacek's performances remain to this day some of the greatest performances I've ever seen on screen or anywhere! (10/23/04)

Gerron K gave it a 10:
This film comes close to flawless as it ever could. With an absolutely riveting performance by Sissy Spacek and a powerful performance by Tim Wilkinson, this film is one of the top films of 2000. Quite disturbing, yet artistic, this film is poetic and poignant. It epitomizes what a film can be when everything is in order.

In the Bedroom Miramax Films

In the Bedroom
Miramax Films