76
Metascore
18 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90The New York TimesDana StevensThe New York TimesDana StevensFascinating. Anyone interested in the challenges and techniques of acting -- which is really to say, anyone interested in human behavior -- should turn off E! and head down to Mr. Almereyda's film.
- 80Village VoiceJ. HobermanVillage VoiceJ. HobermanBoth resonant and skillfully devious.
- 75New York Daily NewsJami BernardNew York Daily NewsJami BernardAmong the many skills required by a documentary maker is the ability to make reticent people blossom. Michael Almereyda has done that in This So-Called Disaster with several of the film industry's most notorious iconoclasts.
- 75New York PostLou LumenickNew York PostLou LumenickThis So-Called Disaster was the father's sarcastic term for their relationship.
- 75Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumEntertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumAlmereyda's fascination with creative creatures and their mysterious ways is abundantly clear. And distracting.
- 70The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckThe Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckDespite the often insightful comments by the various cast members and Shepard himself -- the film doesn't dig very deeply into the artistic process of putting on a new play. But it does offer a fascinating fly-on-the-wall perspective.
- 70New York Magazine (Vulture)Peter RainerNew York Magazine (Vulture)Peter RainerFor all its high-end ambitions, This So-Called Disaster has a tabloid-TV-like appeal: We want to see if these volatile performers get on each other's nerves.
- 70VarietyScott FoundasVarietyScott FoundasNot as insightful as "Topsy-Turvy" or "Vanya on 42nd Street" about the process of putting on a show, it's nonetheless a fascinating meeting of the minds -- between iconic New York indie filmmaker Michael Almereyda and laconic American cowboy and dramatist Shepard.
- 70TV Guide MagazineKen FoxTV Guide MagazineKen FoxIt offers a rare opportunity to watch a world-class playwright bringing one of his own works to life; rarer still, Almereyda puts his notoriously reticent subjects so sufficiently at ease that they actually sit down and discuss their craft.
- 50The A.V. ClubScott TobiasThe A.V. ClubScott TobiasThe scattered insights in This So-Called Disaster aren't worth the sifting it takes to find them.