45
Metascore
31 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 67The A.V. ClubScott TobiasThe A.V. ClubScott TobiasThough Clarkson acquits herself reasonably well in a terribly conceived role, her entrance interrupts David’s hilariously twisted mentorship of Wood and sends the movie careening in a far less promising direction.
- 63Rolling StonePeter TraversRolling StonePeter TraversWhatever Works feels like something out of time and, worse, out of step. Hell, Allen wrote the script back in the 1970s for Zero Mostel.
- 60The Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckThe Hollywood ReporterFrank ScheckFeatures enough genuine laughs to give it decent commercial traction.
- 60The New YorkerAnthony LaneThe New YorkerAnthony LaneThere was always a dreaminess in his vision of the city, but now it feels as distant as the polished floors and the Deco furnishings of the Fred Astaire movies that Boris finds--of course--whenever he turns on the TV.
- 50New York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinNew York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinIt's hard to get past the primitiveness of Allen’s fantasies.
- 50New York PostLou LumenickNew York PostLou LumenickIt isn't the laugh riot of the year.
- 50VarietyRonnie ScheibVarietyRonnie ScheibThis far-fetched, deliberately artificial game of musical chairs -- in which mismatched characters encircle, attract and repel each other -- feels forced, often losing itself in excess verbiage.
- 50Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumEntertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumThe fact that Allen wrote the script in the '70s explains something about why his newest movie feels so old.
- 40Village VoiceJ. HobermanVillage VoiceJ. HobermanBlown opportunity.
- 40The New York TimesA.O. ScottThe New York TimesA.O. ScottNone of it works. Or it works too hard. Whatever.