Metacritic Movie Ratings
Fay Grim Reviews

A sample of reviews from critics across the country.

• 70

  out of 100

  Los Angeles TimesKevin Crust

  A sophisticated, sometimes intentionally silly spy thriller of international intrigue, Fay Grim charts the history of American foreign policy while commenting on current global complications with wink and a nudge.

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• 63

  out of 100

  USA TodayClaudia Puig

  The movie opens with wit and dash, then devolves into a rather generic spy thriller.

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• 50

  out of 100

  VarietyTodd McCarthy

  A strange international odyssey that becomes more complicated and loony by the moment. Some viewers will undoubtedly tune out early, others will follow as far as they can -- and a privileged few might make it all the way.

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• 50

  out of 100

  The New York TimesStephen Holden

  Too light-headed to qualify as satire, too poker-faced to register as comedy, Fay Grim belongs in its own stylistic niche: the Hal Hartley film.

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• 50

  out of 100

  Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert

  The result is that we feel deliberately distanced from the film. It is not so much an exercise in style as an exercise in search of a style. The story doesn't involve us because we can't follow it, and we doubt if the characters can, either.

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• 50

  out of 100

  The Hollywood ReporterMichael Rechtshaffen

  Hartley's kooky cosmopolitan caper can never be accused of slumming, but the shift from dry, offbeat wit to politically charged drama is a little jarring, to say the least; it's a bit like taking in Woody Allen's "Annie Hall" and having it morph mid-way through into "Shadows and Fog."

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• 42

  out of 100

  Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman

  The faux espionage plot, with its winks at terrorism, is really just a convoluted plea for the relevance of precious indie artistes (i.e., Hal Hartley).

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