63
Metascore
12 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 91The Film StageThe Film StageIt may have moments where it feels unwieldy—like a runaway train gone off its tracks—but it never flags for one second. A movie this bold doesn’t dare lose momentum.
- 90TheWrapCarlos AguilarTheWrapCarlos AguilarA gut-punch of a debut that examines race relations in America with unabashed force, Johnson’s present-day interpretation proves, disgracefully, how pertinent Wright’s text remains.
- 80The GuardianBenjamin LeeThe GuardianBenjamin LeeIt’s a fiery, flawed, often stunningly made film that provokes uncomfortable discussion, rather like the Richard Wright novel it was based on, although purists might argue over some key changes.
- 70New York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriNew York Magazine (Vulture)Bilge EbiriUltimately, this is Sanders’s show. His performance breathes new life into one of American literature’s most heartbreaking and controversial characters.
- 70Screen DailyTim GriersonScreen DailyTim GriersonWhile this slow-motion tragedy sometimes risks more than it can deliver, the film’s cumulative effect stuns nonetheless. Ashton Sanders heads a fine cast that forcibly articulates the everyday landmines African-Americans have to navigate in a white society that often seems intent on destroying them.
- 67The A.V. ClubA.A. DowdThe A.V. ClubA.A. DowdThe early stretch of the movie is its strongest, as Johnson lays out the bric-a-brac of Bigger’s life, which involves a good deal of code-switching, and carefully tweaks the novel’s key relationships, updating the condescension of his employer’s rich-kid daughter, Mary (Margaret Qualley), to a new era of white guilt and microaggressions.
- 67The PlaylistGregory EllwoodThe PlaylistGregory EllwoodFor every scene that doesn’t work there is another that’s spellbinding. It’s gutsy and provocative and, frankly, that’s a compliment you can’t give many independent films these days.
- 50Though it has some problems as a film — some of which are part and parcel of translating a book to the screen — Native Son still packs a punch, one that connects directly with the gut.
- 50VarietyOwen GleibermanVarietyOwen GleibermanNative Son, after its promising first half, leaves you dispirited, because it’s a movie where hope gets snuffed by a stacked deck.