Critic Reviews

Revolutionary Road (2008) Rank 3 Reviews

Expert Review Summary

Movie critics combined give Revolutionary Road (2008) a score of 2.8244 out of 4

based on (117) reviews

Click on the numbers to the right of the graph to see reviews of that rating

Excellent

(32)

Very Good

(50)

Good

(31)

Fair

(3)

Poor

(1)

Reviews by Score:

Compuserve (Harvey S. Karten)

Another gem from director Sam Mendes about suburbanites who lead lives of quiet desperation. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Compuserve (Harvey S. Karten)

Variety (Todd McCarthy)

Revolutionary Road is a very good bigscreen adaptation of an outstanding American novel faithful, intelligent, admirably acted, superbly shot. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Variety (Todd McCarthy)

New York Daily News (Joe Neumaier)

The novel is told mostly from Frank's viewpoint, the movie is just as much April's, and Winslet, whether fighting back or fighting back tears, is sensational. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at New York Daily News (Joe Neumaier)

EricDSnider.com (Eric D. Snider)

If you're looking for a sad, well-crafted time at the movies, this is your best bet. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at EricDSnider.com (Eric D. Snider)

Entertainment Weekly (Owen Gleiberman)

Revolutionary Road has deception, adultery, operatic shouting, the then-forbidden specter of abortion, and a few scenes that spotlight the remarkable performance of Michael Shannon as John Givings. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Entertainment Weekly (Owen Gleiberman)

Cinema Signals (Jules Brenner)

Onscreen cigarette smoking is as incessant as April's discontent--the period prop that becomes a running gag. A more important choke point, though, is dim audience involvement. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Cinema Signals (Jules Brenner)

At the Movies (Margaret Pomeranz)

The territory covered is bleak but searingly honest. It is another terrific achievement for Mendes. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at At the Movies (Margaret Pomeranz)

EmanuelLevy.com (Emanuel Levy)

Though boasting strong, Oscar-caliber turns from DiCaprio, Winslet, and Michael Shannon, Mendes' second dissection of suburbia is too studied and deliberate in the first acts before generating emotional power, and may suffer in comparison to TV's Mad Men. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at EmanuelLevy.com (Emanuel Levy)

Boxoffice Magazine (Mark Keizer)

Packs considerable punch. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Boxoffice Magazine (Mark Keizer)

Compuserve (Harvey S. Karten)

Another gem from director Sam Mendes about suburbanites who lead lives of quiet desperation. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Compuserve (Harvey S. Karten)

Film Threat (Don R. Lewis)

An unforgettable film and one of the year's best. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Film Threat (Don R. Lewis)

Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)

It reunites again Titanic doomed shipmates Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet and Kathy Bates, but this time as doomed suburbanites. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)

Daily Mirror [UK] (David Edwards)

It�s as if someone�s taken the American Dream, lashed it to a table and cut it open to see how it works. An uncomfortable process, to be sure, but an awfully compelling one, too. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Daily Mirror [UK] (David Edwards)

Heart 106.2 (Simon Thompson)

A great script, visually stunning cinematography and great direction from Kate�s husband Sam Mendes make this a remarkable experience. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Heart 106.2 (Simon Thompson)

Jam! Movies (Liz Braun)

The movie is intense and stylized, and bristling with great performances. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Jam! Movies (Liz Braun)

Spirituality and Practice (Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat)

An unflinching look at the discontent of a suburban couple and the ways they deal with the death of their dream of liberation. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Spirituality and Practice (Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat)

Slate (Dana Stevens)

Why does the movie feel as pleasantly deadening as the midcentury Connecticut suburb where it takes place? ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Slate (Dana Stevens)

St. Paul Pioneer Press (Chris Hewitt (St. Paul))

Sam Mendes, still better known for his theater work than as a movie director, has put a decidedly theatrical spin on Richard Yates' 1961 novel. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at St. Paul Pioneer Press (Chris Hewitt (St. Paul))

NPR.org (Bob Mondello)

Buy the house in the suburbs, go to work, take out the garbage, have an affair — slowly these two mortgage their dreams. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at NPR.org (Bob Mondello)

Urban Cinefile (Andrew L. Urban)

Skilfully adapted and superbly directed, the film is an emotional tornado, delivered with exceptional performances from not only the two leads but the entire cast ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Urban Cinefile (Andrew L. Urban)

Houston Chronicle (Amy Biancolli)

Viewers in the mood for rip-snorting marital combat should go ahead and partake, but they must prepare to leave the theatre in a state of profound depression. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Houston Chronicle (Amy Biancolli)

Globe and Mail (Liam Lacey)

Sam Mendes has worked in this territory before with his Oscar-winning American Beauty. Revolutionary Road is a better movie because it doesn't rely on such blatant caricatures. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Globe and Mail (Liam Lacey)

WaffleMovies.com (Willie Waffle)

Revolutionary Road is for those of you who think Marley & Me looks like a sappy, falsely cute, sugary sweet concoction of junk. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at WaffleMovies.com (Willie Waffle)

Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)

[A] devastating if flawed adaptation of the Richard Yates novel. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)

Mr. Brown's Movies (Michael Dequina)

However familiar it may ring, this very downbeat tale about dreams dashed in the name of stifling social conformity feels freshly devastating, thanks to the lead pair. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Mr. Brown's Movies (Michael Dequina)

Modern Fabulousity (Gabriel Shanks)

An actors' showcase for its iconic duo...and both have grown impressively since they last swooned shipside. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Modern Fabulousity (Gabriel Shanks)

ReelTalk Movie Reviews (Jeffrey Chen)

Revolutionary Road assuredly closes the door on its potential for surprise and deeper insight, and all we can do is effortlessly second-guess its inevitable conclusion. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at ReelTalk Movie Reviews (Jeffrey Chen)

Onion AV Club (Keith Phipps)

Both director and cast keep the familiar journey intense, but after capturing the death of love in those opening moments, the rest of the film too often feels like a study in dissection. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Onion AV Club (Keith Phipps)

Christianity Today (Brett McCracken)

And by the end of Revolutionary Road, we know one thing for certain, there has got to be a better way. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Christianity Today (Brett McCracken)

Reeling Reviews (Robin Clifford)

It is good, not great, and it is the two stars that make this worth the price of admission. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Reeling Reviews (Robin Clifford)

Beliefnet (Nell Minow)

It may be, as Thoreau said, that "most men lead lives of quiet desperation," but in the movies, desperation is much more likely to be loud. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Beliefnet (Nell Minow)

Spectrum (St. George, Utah) (Bruce Bennett)

People will argue over the film's histrionic tendencies but stars Kate Winslet and Leonardo DeCaprio bring it in every scene and produce an admittedly depressing film. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Spectrum (St. George, Utah) (Bruce Bennett)

Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)

Strong performances steer this 1950s marital drama out of a period-picture trap. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)

www.susangranger.com (Susan Granger)

Hoplessly bleak and disturbingly detached, this dissection of a doomed marriage is saved by Kate Winslet's formidable performance. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at www.susangranger.com (Susan Granger)

New York Observer (Andrew Sarris)

It simply doesn't play as well as it reads. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at New York Observer (Andrew Sarris)

House Next Door (Dan Callahan)

Revolutionary Road is not a great film, per se; a great film needs the stamp of a great director. But it is a great film of this great book. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at House Next Door (Dan Callahan)

Metromix.com (Geoff Berkshire)

A skillfully composed but gloomy affair that rigidly positions itself as a Serious Adult Drama of the feel-bad variety. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Metromix.com (Geoff Berkshire)

Antagony & Ecstasy (Tim Brayton)

Sam Mendes is very much the MVP of this film, and he doesn't care who knows it; that's not enough to make the film great, but at least it's more successful than a lot of our recent prestige pictures. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Antagony & Ecstasy (Tim Brayton)

Philadelphia Daily News (Gary Thompson)

The many millions who swooned over their romance in Titanic should expect to encounter a very different couple in Revolutionary Road. The bloom is very much off the rose. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Philadelphia Daily News (Gary Thompson)

I.E. Weekly (Amy Nicholson)

Like Columbus, British filmmaker Sam Mendes insists he's discovered America. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at I.E. Weekly (Amy Nicholson)

Toronto Star (Peter Howell)

Somehow the film fails to inspire more than admiration, never reaching the same heights of empathy achieved by less impeccable treatments of the same topic. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Toronto Star (Peter Howell)

Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA) (John Wirt)

Mendes' skillfully struck detachment sabotages pathos. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Advocate (Baton Rouge, LA) (John Wirt)

Kansas City Star (Robert W. Butler)

It packs some dramatic fireworks but, in the end, not enough emotional punch. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Kansas City Star (Robert W. Butler)

Premiere Magazine (Jennifer Miller)

The directing, acting, set design, it's all top notch! ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Premiere Magazine (Jennifer Miller)

Boston Globe (Ty Burr)

Winslet gives a fearless performance here. It's not her fault her husband has shrouded it in Taste. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Boston Globe (Ty Burr)

Denver Post (Lisa Kennedy)

Like its cinematic kin, Frost/Nixon and Doubt, this, too, is a delicately crafted, prestige project whose translation to screen doesn't deliver the original's amazements. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Denver Post (Lisa Kennedy)

Illinois Times (Charles Koplinski)

Revolutionary takes us down a familiar road. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Illinois Times (Charles Koplinski)

New York Times (Manohla Dargis)

Nothing much happens in the story, just two ordinary lives coming apart at the seams. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at New York Times (Manohla Dargis)

Combustible Celluloid (Jeffrey M. Anderson)

Revolutionary Road fails to make the idea of dropping out either attractive or relevant. It fails to find any humor, tension or release in its situation. It fails to make this family and their friends feel plausible. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Combustible Celluloid (Jeffrey M. Anderson)

Scene-Stealers.com (Eric Melin)

[Solid] performances took me over some of the bumps of the movie. ...read the complete Revolutionary Road movie review at Scene-Stealers.com (Eric Melin)

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