Joe Bell

Name: Joe Bell
Genre: Biography, Drama
Released: July 23, 2021
Duration: 94 min
Rating: 54
Cast: Ashley Santos, Blaine Maye, Charles Halford, Connie Britton, Coral Chambers

2021

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 26 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 19 Ratings

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5.8

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5.8	User Score Mixed or average reviews based on 19 Ratings

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Movie Details & Credits

Roadside Attractions | Release Date: July 23, 2021 | Not Rated

Starring: Ashley Santos, Blaine Maye, Charles Halford, Connie Britton, Coral Chambers, Gary Sinise, Igby Rigney, Juan Antonio, Mark Wahlberg, Max Jenkins, Morgan Lily, Reid Miller, Scout Smith, Tara Buck

Summary: Joe Bell tells the intimate and emotional true story of an Oregonian father who pays tribute to his gay teenage son Jadin, embarking on a self-reflective walk across America to speak his heart to heartland citizens about the real and terrifying costs of bullying.

Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green

Genre(s): Biography, Drama

Rating: Not Rated

Runtime: 94 min

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Critic Reviews

The Film Stage Jared Mobarak

Sep 20, 2020

The entirety of Good Joe Bell is an awakening not for those who actively harm at-risk youth like Jadin, but those who don’t realize the implicit harm they’re supplying by centering allyship on themselves rather than those they’re supporting. Read full review

David Rooney

Sep 15, 2020

Green's grasp of this tender, family-focused story shows equal restraint and compassion, and mastery of a tricky structure. Read full review

Richard Lawson

Sep 20, 2020

Good Joe Bell could have been schmaltzy, simplistic, too hungry for uplift. Green, though—and McMurtry and Ossana and, gulp, Wahlberg—keep the film in check. They don’t lose sight of what is really being spoken about here. Read full review

A.A. Dowd

Sep 20, 2020

Wahlberg, delivering a performance that feels like community service, just isn’t up to driving a drama whose conflict is almost entirely internal; his default setting of sneering irritation is the wrong tool for the job. It leaves you wondering if this should have more fully been Jadin’s story, especially given the sensitivity of Miller’s turn. Read full review

Michael Phillips

Jul 23, 2021

There’s a good movie in the story of Joe Bell and Jadin Bell. The good one struggles to emerge from the good try we have here. Read full review

Tim Grierson

Sep 20, 2020

Because Good Joe Bell spends so much time wondering how this father will change and grow, it doesn’t concentrate enough on his son, who is actually experiencing the bullying. Read full review

Jake Cole

Jul 19, 2021

The tired, tasteless gimmick at the center of the film inadvertently reveals its entire problem of perspective. Read full review

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User Reviews

Bell21

Aug 17, 2021

The best movie I have ever seen in my life

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

electronicoffee

Aug 21, 2021

Breaks my heart so many people would downvote or nitpick on this. Where the **** are your morals or heart or sanity? This kid committed suicide for being bullied for being gay and his dad took a trip to tell the world his story. Anyone who's lost a parent or child should especially toBreaks my heart so many people would downvote or nitpick on this. Where the **** are your morals or heart or sanity? This kid committed suicide for being bullied for being gay and his dad took a trip to tell the world his story. Anyone who's lost a parent or child should especially to suicide should be able to relate. I hate what leftism has done to the world, but homophobia still exists despite all the gays you see on TV and as an elder gay who came out a long time before all of this in the 80s/90s fighting for gay rights and visibility, it astounds me how many people on the right just think homophobia went away like it was some fantasy. No, it's very real and one of the last few prejudices people are 'okay' with behind closed doors and even openly sometimes. Maybe you wouldn't know that from all the gays on television and in movies, but that doesn't mean a lot of people haven't just moved their prejudices from the front porch to inside the house. If you're a conservative or centrist and don't hate homosexuals, I'm not talking about you- but I've encountered a LOT of homophobia on these free speech platforms and I don't mean someone using the word gay or **** or whatever (It has never bothered me when people use slang esp when gaming or busting each other's balls) but TRUE homophobia where someone is just disgusted or hates you for actually being homosexual and open about it. I don't use the terms racism or homophobia casually unless I see actual evidence of it. Soapbox rant over.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

Mauro_Lanari

Apr 10, 2022

(Mauro Lanari)
A new nosographic category has been added in the DSM-5: "persistent complex bereavement disorder" (PCBD), formerly known as "prolonged grief disorder" (PGD). Experienced by about 10% of people who survive the death of a loved one, this is the very painful universality of the(Mauro Lanari)
A new nosographic category has been added in the DSM-5: "persistent complex bereavement disorder" (PCBD), formerly known as "prolonged grief disorder" (PGD). Experienced by about 10% of people who survive the death of a loved one, this is the very painful universality of the movie, regardless of homophobia, bullying and social inclusivism.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

JLuis_001

Aug 14, 2021

Full of good intentions, but the situation it presents needed a more focused approach. One that would've really confronted the viewer, and Joe Bell just fails in that regard.

And most of all, it needed a better actor to be able to sell that message. Mark Wahlberg is consumed by theFull of good intentions, but the situation it presents needed a more focused approach. One that would've really confronted the viewer, and Joe Bell just fails in that regard.

And most of all, it needed a better actor to be able to sell that message.
Mark Wahlberg is consumed by the material, and is unable to deliver what it takes for his character to be seriously convincing.

It could've been much better.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

TVJerry

Jul 26, 2021

Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana co-wrote the breakthrough gay film Brokeback Mountain, but this new effort (based on a true story) is not nearly as successful. Mark Wahlberg plays Bell, a father who treks across country to make a statement about bullying and the effect it had on his gay son.Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana co-wrote the breakthrough gay film Brokeback Mountain, but this new effort (based on a true story) is not nearly as successful. Mark Wahlberg plays Bell, a father who treks across country to make a statement about bullying and the effect it had on his gay son. Not only does he deal with prejudice and homophobia, he also delves into his own flawed reactions. There’s a kernel of effective drama here, but the bland and sometimes seemingly aimless writing misses the mark. Speaking of Mark, a more accomplished actor might have made the this work, but Wahlberg simply doesn’t have the depth or skill to portray the character’s internal conflict. In contrast, Reid Miller’s portrayal of the son is multilayered and touching. Thirty years ago, this film might have had a powerful effect, but now it just seems overly preachy and lacking the punch the subject deserves.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

VaryFincher

Jul 25, 2021

Great movie. Don't listen to critics. Extremely moving and well executed. Great performances.

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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