73
Metascore
11 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 83The PlaylistKatie WalshThe PlaylistKatie WalshAs underground and DIY as the kiki scene might be, it’s still highly organized, and part of what Kiki expresses is this community organization as a strategy for survival. The struggle is real, and it’s hard to imagine how they keep pushing that boulder up the hill — being fully themselves in the face of so much hardship — but they are tough, and united.
- 80The GuardianLanre BakareThe GuardianLanre BakareIt’s a kaleidoscopic and vivid rendering of a world that is larger than life, flamboyant but ultimately fragile.
- 80The Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyThe Hollywood ReporterDavid RooneyAn uplifting sense emerges of the resilience through community of youth who are marginalized, abandoned, isolated, bullied or sexually exploited.
- 80Screen DailyFionnuala HalliganScreen DailyFionnuala HalliganSad, proud, loud, funny, energetic and affecting, Kiki the documentary reflects accurately the spirit of kiki, the scene.
- 80Los Angeles TimesJustin ChangLos Angeles TimesJustin ChangKiki often casts a rueful gaze, but it’s also exuberant and alive, and never despairing. It leaves you with the bracing sense that however tough and resilient its subjects might be forced to become, their hope of a better, more tolerant future will never go out of style.
- 80The New York TimesGlenn KennyThe New York TimesGlenn KennyKiki shows us a group of brave and beautiful souls for whom the struggle is, unfortunately, probably about to get even harder.
- 75RogerEbert.comSheila O'MalleyRogerEbert.comSheila O'MalleyWith music by Qween Beat, Kiki shows the new generation of the ballroom scene, their care for one another, their awareness of the struggles ahead, their determination to be themselves, against all odds. They are scared, but they are strong.
- 70VarietyPeter DebrugeVarietyPeter DebrugeRegrettably, Kiki seems far less interested in entertainment than activism.
- 50The Film StageDaniel SchindelThe Film StageDaniel SchindelThe love these characters have for their lifestyle is obvious, as is their reasons for rejecting mainstream society for it, but the joy they receive from it is not conveyed to the viewer. Without that, Kiki is a decent survey of its chosen topic, but rarely anything more.
- 50Slant MagazineDiego SemereneSlant MagazineDiego SemereneWhen compared to the high-stakes dramas at the center of Paris Is Burning, where sex workers dreamed of becoming supermodels, Kiki feels rather tame.