57
Metascore
14 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 80The A.V. ClubThe A.V. ClubAs provocative as all this is, Trumbull keeps things grounded, interested to an almost baffling degree in the technical and logistical sides of this theoretical technology, as well as the emotional arcs of the humans creating it.
- 70The New York TimesJanet MaslinThe New York TimesJanet MaslinHowever adversely it must have affected the morale of those involved in making Brainstorm, the death of Natalie Wood hasn't damaged the film. Her performance feels complete. Playing a more mature character than she had done before, Miss Wood brought hints of a greater sturdiness and depth to this role, which is pivotal but relatively small.
- 60EmpireWilliam ThomasEmpireWilliam ThomasInteresting but flawed.
- 60Time OutTime OutAs a thriller it's a bit soft, as sci-fi it's a bit simple.
- 60TV Guide MagazineTV Guide MagazineThis could have been a wonderful film, but the makers fell in love with the hardware and forgot the humanity. BRAINSTORM is chockablock with special effects that sometimes obstruct rather than enhance the story.
- 50Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertThis is a good idea for a movie. Unfortunately, in Brainstorm it remains basically an idea. The characters take such a secondary importance to the gadget that we never feel much for them.
- 50Slant MagazineSlant MagazineAs though this ridiculousness weren’t sufficiently groan-inducing, the scenes depicting the mischief Brace wreaks on the corporation while he’s mid-hack undergo a bizarre tonal shift into Keystone Kops slapstick.
- 50Miami HeraldBill CosfordMiami HeraldBill CosfordNo ears for dialogue around here, either: Several characters observe that the invention "blew my socks off," an expression so odd that we expect it to lead to a comic payoff. But there is none, and there's not much to the movie, either. [30 Sept 1983, p.D1]
- 50Washington PostGary ArnoldWashington PostGary ArnoldDoug Trumbull has spent years maneuvering a potentially stirring mystic pretext to the threshold of realization, only to balk and stumble at the act of finally crossing that threshold. [29 Sept 1983, p.D1]