Life Itself

Name: Life Itself
Genre: Drama, Romance
Released: September 21, 2018
Duration: 117 min
Rating: 21
Cast: Àlex Monner, Annette Bening, Antonio Banderas, Caitlin Carmichael, Fernanda Andrade

2018

METASCORE

Generally unfavorable reviews based on 39 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 49 Ratings

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5.5	User Score Mixed or average reviews based on 49 Ratings

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Life Itself: This Land Is My Story

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Movie Details & Credits

Amazon Studios | Release Date: September 21, 2018 | R

Starring: Àlex Monner, Annette Bening, Antonio Banderas, Caitlin Carmichael, Fernanda Andrade, Jake Robinson, Jean Smart, Laia Costa, Mandy Patinkin, Olivia Cooke, Olivia Wilde, Oscar Isaac, Samuel L. Jackson, Sergio Peris-Mencheta

Summary: Life Itself centers on a couple (Oscar Isaac and Olivia Wilde) that lead a multi generational love story spanning both decades and continents, from the streets of New York to the Spanish countryside, and are all connected by a single event.

Director: Dan Fogelman

Genre(s): Drama, Romance

Rating: R

Runtime: 117 min

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Critic Reviews

James Berardinelli

Sep 20, 2018

Life Itself starts out with great promise – a dizzying first act that creates the tapestry of a character’s life by offering a kaleidoscope of moments from his past. It’s poignant, effective, and punctuated by actions that are breathtakingly sudden and unexpected. However, after the strong beginning, the movie takes a conventional turn. Read full review

The Playlist Gregory Ellwood

Sep 11, 2018

Fogelman clearly gets a thrill in constructing a tapestry full of one random tragedy after another (seriously, almost nothing good seems to happen to these people long term). And he also appears to love manipulating the audience’s emotions with these subsequent tragedies. Read full review

Allan Hunter

Sep 11, 2018

Some of the wit and emotion strikes home and the longer we spend with individual characters the more their story resonates. Read full review

Michael Phillips

Sep 20, 2018

Life Itself is an emotional mugging, not a movie. Read full review

David Lewis

Sep 21, 2018

The rambling Life Itself is a multigenerational drama about the messiness of life, but the emotional impact of the movie gets lost in the messiness of its screenplay. And though there is not one subpar acting performance, the film itself comes off as an exercise in self-consciousness. Read full review

The Telegraph Tim Robey

Jan 10, 2019

he film's indulgences are so heart-on-sleeve that it's hard to differentiate watching it from hearing someone pitch their very bad screenplay ideas with no attempt to read the room. Read full review

Peter Travers

Sep 19, 2018

How do you rate a cinematic black hole that doesn’t deserve a single star? Do you simply give it five eyerolls? Better question: How does a movie, with all the talent in the world going for it, become a such a blithering botch job? Read full review

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User Reviews

ifritforce

Dec 23, 2018

Una historia hermosa narrada impecablemente, no comprneo las criticas si fue muy bien narrada

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Rusuien

Jul 14, 2020

This film is an absolute masterpiece. It consists of intricate story telling and connects it's intertwining stories into a beautiful and emotional journey. This film is not about the ending or the climax and doesn't conform to conventional story telling, but that should not take away fromThis film is an absolute masterpiece. It consists of intricate story telling and connects it's intertwining stories into a beautiful and emotional journey. This film is not about the ending or the climax and doesn't conform to conventional story telling, but that should not take away from it's creative writing and tear jerking moments.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

RyanGimeson

Sep 27, 2018

I'm giving this a 10 because the performances and dialogue in this film are of consistently high quality, and because these low reviews are ridiculous. People keep saying their emotions feel fake; no they do not, and if you still don't buy the authenticity, that would be because they'reI'm giving this a 10 because the performances and dialogue in this film are of consistently high quality, and because these low reviews are ridiculous. People keep saying their emotions feel fake; no they do not, and if you still don't buy the authenticity, that would be because they're actors playing characters, not real people. Seriously though Olivia Cooke is BRILLIANT in this same with Oscar Isaac and Antonio Banderas. I get it if this isn't ur thing the philosophical approach this film takes can be overbearing for some people but I thought it made for a well crafted screenplay complemented by gorgeous cinematography and stunningly real characters. A little predictable for sure, but it has a real, beating heart. I'm gonna remember this film for a while.… Expand

5 of 6 users found this helpful51

JackusBlackus

Sep 28, 2018

In short, the film is watchable and even enjoyable in some respects due to good individual performances and good dialogue; however, I found it to difficult to remain engaged for several reasons.

First, the various stories seem unrelated with only minor interactions. The transitions areIn short, the film is watchable and even enjoyable in some respects due to good individual performances and good dialogue; however, I found it to difficult to remain engaged for several reasons.

First, the various stories seem unrelated with only minor interactions. The transitions are abrupt, ending one story and then moving onto the next. While the plot ties them all together in the end, waiting for it takes some effort.

Second, all of the stories are centered around tragedy and I just stopped caring at some point.

Third, with the amount of time spent on the "unreliable narrator" device in the beginning, I expected (or even hoped for) it to play a significant role in the movie, but it doesn't. Sure, there is a little twist in the end that ties it all together, but it is ineffective and unimportant.

Finally, the resolution at the end that ties everything together was a disappointment.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

PPrat

Oct 10, 2021

Really very good movie... deep and well written... happy to see IMDb with 69% positive, and the Google viewers at 87%

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

JLuis_001

Jun 16, 2022

Life Itself is the sad kind of drama that pushes and shoves melodramatic and harsh situations in order to make you identify with them and care about their characters, because it's incapable of genuinely building its momentum.

Those reasons and their gross exaggeration make this film bothLife Itself is the sad kind of drama that pushes and shoves melodramatic and harsh situations in order to make you identify with them and care about their characters, because it's incapable of genuinely building its momentum.

Those reasons and their gross exaggeration make this film both meaningless and artificial.

Good cast, squandered again.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

The3AcademySins

Feb 3, 2019

Life Itself is easily the worst movie of 2018. It is also one of the most offensive, insulting, and insipid movies I have ever had the misfortune of watching. Dan Fogleman's script is nothing short of emotionally manipulative drivel. I almost can't believe that he wrote and directed thisLife Itself is easily the worst movie of 2018. It is also one of the most offensive, insulting, and insipid movies I have ever had the misfortune of watching. Dan Fogleman's script is nothing short of emotionally manipulative drivel. I almost can't believe that he wrote and directed this hack-job.

The biggest problem with Life Itself is that it doesn't trust the audience to understand and make connections with the characters. It sets up contrived plot devices and tragedies with no originality and then has the balls to laud itself unironically as "unique and original." It has the unmitigated STONES to compare itself to Pulp Fiction. This movie is nothing like Pulp Fiction. If anything, Life Itself is a less-good rip-off of 500 Days of Summer and Manchester By The Sea, but it doesn't even understand how those two movies work.

The premise of Life Itself is that there are two families tied together by a single traumatic event. Characters are drowned in horrible tragedies, there is a Spanish sub-plot that feels tacked on, and the fact that the script tries to tie it all together at the end to make a profound statement is so degrading that the only real tragedy is that I wasted my time watching this movie at all. The movie's theme is "Life Itself is the ultimate unreliable narrator." The movie has no problem spoon-feeding you this theme and saying it out loud word-for-word multiple times during the movie. Talk about a stupid waste of a title-drop. I loved This Is Us, but now I am convinced that Dan Fogelman is a jack off.… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

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