Legend of Zorro, The

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

The picture is almost shamefully entertaining, bold and self-effacing at once: Its intelligence reveals itself as a devilish gleam, not a pompous layer of shellac. Why can't more Hollywood movies be like this one?

Slate David Edelstein

Good as it is, The Legend of Zorro would be a hollow feat without leads who are drop-dead-gorgeous movie stars and spectacular clowns.

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

Turning "Zorro" into a family movie with domestic squabbles and sitcom situations takes some of the luster off the romantic adventure of Old California.

Variety Brian Lowry

Bigger, louder and considerably less charming than its predecessor…Still, there are enough crowd-pleasing moments amid the frenetic action.

Entertainment Weekly Lisa Schwarzbaum

Banderas uses all his old wiles in this well-oiled, businesslike, quite clangingly violent sequel to "The Mask of Zorro."

USA Today Mike Clark

Of all things, this movie has the same problem "Ghostbusters 2" had, which is this: You can't take bigger-than-life screen types and toss them into everyday, regular-folk situations.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

You must cast aside all rules of our space-time continuum to appreciate a fantasy like this one, though even then you might consider 130 minutes to be too much of a good thing.

Philadelphia Inquirer Carrie Rickey

A movie-movie - big, lush and sexy. And formulaic, saddled with more plot than it needs and more "Spy Kids" references than it should have, but still . . .

Premiere Ryan Devlin

The family dynamic, paired with a few delicious action scenes, is engaging enough that we hardly notice the fillm's major flaw, a rather flimsy and sometimes jingoistic subplot having to do with California's independence.

Empire Kim Newman

If the series wants to become a franchise, a rethink and new blood will be necessary -- maybe Banderas can get mortally wounded in reel one of The Son Of Zorro, passing on the mask and sword to, say, Gael García Bernal.

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

Not as satisfying as the old and unimproved version. In a zealous attempt to broaden its appeal, the Zorro franchise has drifted from the qualities that made the previous film so successful.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold

The movie is full of action and stunts, but after the gangbusters opening, it loses steam and imagination very quickly.

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

Director Martin Campbell and a quartet of screenwriters dump in everything from the rise of the Confederacy to the development of Weapons of Mass Destruction. What escapes them is the cool, clear line of action that would enable Banderas and Zeta-Jones to flaunt their amorous charms without huffing and puffing and stretch their swashbuckling muscles with dash, not balderdash.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Liam Lacey

A big bloated bore-o. Think of a combination of "Wild Wild West" and "Spy Kids."

Miami Herald Connie Ogle

Antonio Banderas looks a little older, Catherine Zeta-Jones snares a bigger role, and the powerful charms of both are weighed down by an absurdly plot-heavy script.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

Two hours of ludicrous action, forced humor and self-conscious romance.

The New York Times Stephen Holden

This is a hiss-the-villain, cheer-the-hero kind of movie.

New York Post Lou Lumenick

There'll likely be more Z's in the audience than on the screen.

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

Spasms of kung fu wire fighting, Spider-Man acrobatics, huge explosions and a lethal polo game can't replace the first film's beating heart and witty soul.

TV Guide Maitland McDonagh

This unnecessary and overlong sequel fails to recapture its predecessor's zing.

Dallas Observer Bill Gallo

It's a workmanlike adventure yarn, intermittently reverent to the canon but not very inspired, and it must be said that Banderas is starting to show signs of wear.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin

Feels like a half-hearted shrug of a sequel, an attempt to put a lucrative franchise on life support.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

Cursed with two of the least interesting bad guys in recent memory. While McGivens and Armand are unquestionably villainous, there's nothing about them to cause audiences to hiss. They're boring.

Christian Science Monitor Peter Rainer

The Legend of Zorro, starring Antonio Banderas as the masked one, made me long to re-watch "Zorro the Gay Blade," the great spoof starring George Hamilton. In that film, the Spanish accents were meant to sound deliberately fake.

Portland Oregonian Marc Mohan

Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones are back, as is director Martin Campbell, but the result has the all-too-common feel of an expired equine redundantly abused.

Village Voice Matt Singer

Most of Mask's cast and crew return, but they forgot to bring the last film's romantic aura and dry sense of humor with them; Anthony Hopkins is deeply missed. Instead, the picture is beset by typical sequel problems like awkward slapstick and allegedly adorable kid sidekicks.

LA Weekly Scott Foundas

The Legend of Zorro is a Saturday matinee entirely lacking in Saturday-matinee thrills or brevity -- what's passable for the first 80 minutes or so becomes intolerable as the movie ticks past the two-hour mark.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

The Legend of Zorro commits a lot of movie sins, but one is mortal: It turns the magnificent Elena into a nag.

Chicago Tribune Michael Phillips

Well, it's pretty bad, a long way from the dash and satisfactions of the earlier picture.

Washington Post Stephen Hunter

What a waste of talent, time and money. And guess what else? Not only is The Legend of Zorro stupid and boring but -- ta-da! -- it's also really long!

Chicago Reader J.R. Jones

I missed the first half hour of this Zorro adventure, and it's a tribute to the idiot-proof screenplay that I had no trouble following the rest.

San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle

Yet, it's watchable -- not remotely enjoyable, but watchable.

Austin Chronicle Marc Savlov

There are precious few things for a Zorro fan – or a film fan, for that matter – not to loathe about The Legend of Zorro.