37
Metascore
7 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 60Boxoffice MagazineJohn P. McCarthyBoxoffice MagazineJohn P. McCarthyThere's nothing more irritating than a piece that strains to be kooky and eccentric, yet one reason The Living Wake ultimately gets to you is that O'Connell is not trying too hard.
- 50The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisThe New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisAudiences will be either captivated or irritated, depending on their tolerance for high-concept whimsy and high-energy theatrics. By the end of the wake itself, they may be wishing Binew’s illness were running ahead of schedule.
- 42The A.V. ClubNathan RabinThe A.V. ClubNathan RabinThe Living Wake is cursed with a permanent smirk of smug self-satisfaction: It’s so delighted with itself that it leaves audiences out of the equation.
- 40Los Angeles TimesKevin ThomasLos Angeles TimesKevin ThomasThe number of clearly talented individuals who committed themselves to the folly of The Living Wake were fearless too.
- 25New York PostLou LumenickNew York PostLou LumenickThis is a terminally whimsical vanity project that would probably have been a chore to sit through even in its original intended format, a 20-minute stage monologue.
- 20Village VoiceVillage VoiceFrom an opening newsreel biography to a climactic Viking funereal ceremony, the film's absurdity proves oppressive, its linguistic cartwheels so mirthless, and its meticulous Wes Anderson–indebted set design and visual compositions so self-conscious, that the ridiculousness feels petrified.