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Cocktail Review

Other Critics provided by Metacritic.com

Critics scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 1.0
    12

    out of 100

    Metascore®
    Overwhelming dislike
    based on a weighted average of all
    critic review scores.

  • 0

    out of 100

    Time Richard Corliss

    Cocktail, has no reason for being other than to market the Cruise charm like a cheap celebrity perfume. It is a bottle of rotgut in a Dom Perignon box. [8 August 1988, p.68]

  • 0

    out of 100

    Wall Street Journal

    This one could bring back Prohibition.

  • 10

    out of 100

    Los Angeles Times Sheila Benson

    Arm wrestling and hamburger building have been exhausted as backgrounds for movies, so it was probably inevitable that bartending would be next. But nothing quite prepares you for the hamburger that Cocktail makes of an old and relatively honorable profession. [29 Jul 1988, p.14]

  • 20

    out of 100

    The New York Times Vincent Canby

    Cocktail, which opens today at the Cinema 2 and other theaters, is ''Saturday Night Fever'' without John Travolta, the Bee-Gees and dancing. It is an inane romantic drama that only a very young, very naive bartender could love. How it got that way is difficult to understand.

    Read Full Review

  • 25

    out of 100

    USA Today

    Near Cocktail's numbing end, viewers who are still awake will hear love interest Elisabeth Shue warn Cruise: "Your sexy little smile isn't going to work this time.'' Drink to that - a Bloody Mary to a bloody shame. [29 Jul 1988, p.4D]

  • 50

    out of 100

    Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

    The more you think about what really happens in Cocktail, the more you realize how empty and fabricated it really is.

    Read Full Review

  • 63

    out of 100

    Chicago Tribune Gene Siskel

    Tom Cruise does with bartending pretty much what he did with a pool cue in "The Color of Money." In other words, he shows skill at a con game while being less successful with the woman in his life. [29 Jul 1988, p.A]

  • See all Cocktail reviews at Metacritic.com

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For Families provided by Common Sense Media

Iffy for 16+

Traditional values trump glitz. Not for kids.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that sex and alcohol consumption play a large part in this movie; the R rating is appropriate. The film features simulated sex with two different women, with little nudity. There are a couple of fistfights, and the aftermath of a suicide is shown. Excessive drinking is integral to the movie's plot and yet there are no particular consequences beyond a hangover.

  • Families can talk about what Brian learns from the suicide of his best friend and mentor. How does Doug's death inspire him to work hard to attain his dream? Families may also want to discuss the role of alcohol in this film. How is it glamorized? Is there an overall good message to the film?

The good stuff
  • message true0

    Messages: Alcohol consumption is excessive and done with little consequence. Education is deemed important. However, classes and teachers are shown as boring and irrelevant. The hero eventually chooses love over money.

What to watch for
  • violence false3

    Violence: Barroom brawls and a suicide.

  • sex false3

    Sex: Simulated sex with two different women, with little nudity.

  • language false5

    Language: Very strong language,

  • consumerism false0

    Consumerism: Brands of alcoholic drinks are shown but not referred to by brand name.

  • drugsalcoholtobacco false5

    Drinking, drugs and smoking: The movie's plot revolves around alcohol.

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© Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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