Critic Reviews
Murder by Numbers (2002) Rank 3 Reviews
Expert Review Summary
based on (196) reviews
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Entertainment Ave! - The Movie Theater
Film Quips Online (John R. McEwen)
The literal cliffhanger ending is far too overblown to be convincing, but most of what comes before it deserves praise. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Film Quips Online (John R. McEwen)
Cinenganos (Luis Martinez)
Murder by Numbers nos obliga a identificarnos no con los representantes de la ley, sino con los autores del crímen. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Cinenganos (Luis Martinez)
Village Voice (Dennis Lim)
Even from deep in a K-hole, you'd need about 10 seconds to figure out the remaining plot twists in this jaded muscle-queen morality tale. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Village Voice (Dennis Lim)
Washington Post (Desson Thomson)
Turns potentially forgettable formula into something strangely diverting. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Washington Post (Desson Thomson)
New York Magazine (Peter Rainer)
Stoppard and his director, Michael Apted, must be aware of how dry their film is, because periodically they work in little thriller divertimenti -- car chases and such -- that only serve to point up how un-thrilling everything is. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at New York Magazine (Peter Rainer)
Moda Mag (Kage Alan)
Entertain Your Brain review
Lights Out Films - DVD Review
Washington Post (Ann Hornaday)
Washington Post (Desson Howe)
3 Black Chicks ("The Diva")
Movie ram-blings (Ram Samudrala)
Sandra Bullock is not very convincing as a tough cop, but she does a better job than Jennifer Lopez in Angel Eyes. The two films have a lot of similarities (and they're both bad).
The movie does quite a good job with the two villains, Richard Haywood ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Movie ram-blings (Ram Samudrala)
JoBlo's Movie Emporium reviews
Baltimore Sun (Michael Sragow)
The story may be about cold-blooded murder, but Bullock's pulsating performance is about the getting of wisdom. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Baltimore Sun (Michael Sragow)
Cinema em Cena (Pablo Villaça)
USA Today (Mike Clark)
The result is two or three cuts above genre standard. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at USA Today (Mike Clark)
Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Ellen A. Kim)
Schroeder's misstep is trying hard to please his star, whether it be her character's empathetic past or one very fake-looking action climax. His greatest service is keeping her toe-to-toe with her talented co-stars -- and both are the better for it. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Seattle Post-Intelligencer (Ellen A. Kim)
Chicago Tribune (Mark Caro)
The outline of Murder by Numbers may be familiar, but the filmmakers and Bullock do an expert job of filling in the colors. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Chicago Tribune (Mark Caro)
La Presse, Montréal (--)
Cinema Signals (--)
Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Richard and Justin, the high school killers in "Murder by Numbers," may not have heard of Leopold and Loeb, or seen Hitchcock's "Rope," or studied any of the other fictional versions ("Compulsion," "Swoon") of the infamous murder pact between two brainy a ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Snack Bar (Adam J. Hakari)
CinemaSpeak.com (Ian Golding)
Bucket Reviews (Danny Baldwin)
Dallas Morning News (Philip Wuntch)
Ryan Gosling and Michael Pitt make a truly sinister pair of culprits. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Dallas Morning News (Philip Wuntch)
Newsday (Jan Stuart)
This is Sandra Bullock at her teasing, wonder woman best. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Newsday (Jan Stuart)
Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)
"The conventional crime film seems lively when it isn't trying too hard to be so cute." ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Ozus' World Movie Reviews (Dennis Schwartz)
Detroit News (Susan Stark)
Murder by Numbers gives Sandra Bullock her best role in recent memory. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Detroit News (Susan Stark)
TheMovieBoy.com (Dustin Putman)
A psychological thriller that is as thoroughly involving and taut as it is intelligently written. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at TheMovieBoy.com (Dustin Putman)
Contra Costa Times (Mary F. Pols)
Slow pace, good acting. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Contra Costa Times (Mary F. Pols)
Hollywood Bitchslap (James E. Laczkowski)
Barbet & Bullock Bring Some Style To A By-The-Numbers Script! ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Hollywood Bitchslap (James E. Laczkowski)
NutzWorld (Blake French)
...the plot weaves us into a complex web. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at NutzWorld (Blake French)
Fresno Bee (Rick Bentley)
An interesting psychological game of cat-and-mouse, three-dimensional characters and believable performances all add up to a satisfying crime drama. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Fresno Bee (Rick Bentley)
Sacramento Bee (Joe Baltake)
Works as another uncompromisingly adult movie that assumes its audience is intelligent and doesn't have to cut narrative corners to make viewers feel safe. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Sacramento Bee (Joe Baltake)
Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
Bullock does a good job here of working against her natural likability, creating a character you'd like to like, and could like, if she weren't so sad, strange and turned in upon herself. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Chicago Sun-Times (Roger Ebert)
BBC Films (Almar Haflidason)
DVDwolf ("Tom Servo")
Reel Film Reviews (David Nusair)
DVDTown (John J. Puccio)
CultureDose.net (Brandon Curtis)
Entertainment Zone Review
Popkorn Junkie's Review
Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
TNMC ("Lazlo Hollyfeld")
filethirteen.com Review
Entertainment Insiders
Screen It! Entertainment Reviews for Parents
IndependentCritics.com (TC Candler)
Movie Vault (Oktay Ege Kozak)
allesfilm.com (Thomas Taborsky)
Shadows on the Wall (Rich Cline)
LA Weekly (F. X. Feeney)
Even as the psychological interdependencies of the two boys take the foreground, the movie gets more and more crowded with fun-house surprises and cliffhanging set pieces. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at LA Weekly (F. X. Feeney)
Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
Though Schroeder makes you squirm more than you want to at the inevitable scenes of the trussed-up female murder victim, he also has the proclivity and the skill to make at least the B-picture half of Murder by Numbers of more than passing interest. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Los Angeles Times (Kenneth Turan)
CineScene.com (Ed Owens)
The Flick Filosopher (MaryAnn Johanson)
MovieJuice! (Mark Ramsey)
Harvey's Movie Review (Harvey O'Brien)
Entertainment Weekly
Even though Bullock engages in a climactic scene of blue-screen peril, she essentially cedes the match to the kids. In this mediocre murder case, their presence is the only thing that's really killer. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Entertainment Weekly
Almost Fabulous Movie Reviews
It wasn't exactly a sleeper, but it sure wasn't great. The promos made this movie out to be something entirely different. I was disappointed in almost every aspect of it, especially the obvious backdrops. You don't exactly get spoon-fed in this one, but ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Almost Fabulous Movie Reviews
E! Online (--)
Definitely a wrong Number . ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at E! Online (--)
Slant Magazine - DVD Review
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
TheWorldJournal.com
eFilmCritic (Jack Sommersby)
Entertainment Insiders (Stephen Wong)
Cineclub-Filmkritik
The Globe and Mail (Toronto) (Liam Lacey)
This is the kind of film where the audience has to sort through the sequences, like visiting the green grocer's: liked that bit, can do without those. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at The Globe and Mail (Toronto) (Liam Lacey)
Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)
"Murder By Numbers" couldn't be more aptly named. There is indeed a murder - two of them, in fact - and the movie proceeds strictly by the numbers laid down long ago in some by-the-book Hollywood writing class. There must also be a more recent, ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Philadelphia Inquirer (Carrie Rickey)
New York Post (Lou Lumenick)
In effect gives you two movies for the price of one. The better one doesn't star Sandra Bullock. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at New York Post (Lou Lumenick)
Boston Globe (Chris Fujiwara)
For much of its length, the film is plausible, if predictable and ponderous. Its strongest assets are its actors. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Boston Globe (Chris Fujiwara)
ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
Towards the end, Murder By Numbers reverts to form with cheesy clichés, plot twists, and a fair amount of unnecessary action, but that's easily the film's low point. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
Film Threat, Hollywood's Indie Voice
Bubakar Awards (Brian Owens)
EricDSnider.com (Eric D. Snider)
It thinks it is original and incisive, when really it's the same old movie-of-the-week. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at EricDSnider.com (Eric D. Snider)
Houston Chronicle (--)
This should've been called Moviemaking by the Numbers . That would be a truthful description. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Houston Chronicle (--)
Dark Horizons (Garth Franklin)
One Guy's Opinion (Frank Swietek)
Proves more lumbering and obvious than dramatically strong or intellectually riveting...Don't count on it for anything beyond a modest level of competence. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at One Guy's Opinion (Frank Swietek)
SPLICEDwire (Rob Blackwelder)
The Movie Mom (Nell Minow)
Eclipse Magazine (Sean O'Connell)
Might have passed as the latest installment of the similarly titled Murder She Wrote franchise. ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at Eclipse Magazine (Sean O'Connell)
JoBlo's Movie Emporium ("JoBlo")
ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
Although I can't quite recommend Murder By Numbers - at least not without qualifications - I will admit to having been pleasantly surprised by the film. Based on previews (probably an unfair method to pre-judge any motion picture), I had expected another ...read the complete Murder by Numbers movie review at ReelViews (James Berardinelli)
The UK Critic (Ian Waldron-Mantgani)
UpcomingDiscs.com (David Annandale)
from $1.99 (21 sellers)
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