80
Metascore
17 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100TimeRichard SchickelTimeRichard SchickelBut it is the style with which this wild farce is developed that sustains our horrified interest and keeps us laughing as the darkness gathers around Barbara and Oliver. [11 Dec 1989]
- 90Chicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumChicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumA compellingly watchable, suspenseful, and often funny treatment of a grim subject--the hatred that can build up in a long-term marriage--that also becomes an indirect commentary on yuppie materialism.
- 90Rolling StonePeter TraversRolling StonePeter TraversUnder the astute direction of Danny DeVito, who does a sly turn as Oliver's attorney, this acid-dipped epic of revenge is killingly funny and dramatically daring.
- 90Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles TimesBiting and vicious, a styptic pencil on the battered face of "civilized divorce." It's also thoughtful, laceratingly funny, and bravely true to its own black-and-blue comic vision. [8 Dec 1989]
- 83Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment WeeklyDeVito doesn't hesitate to send the camera anywhere to goose the humor.
- 80Washington PostDesson ThomsonWashington PostDesson ThomsonThe most brutal husband-wife encounter since axe-wielding Jack Nicholson yelled "Heeeeere's Johnny!" to Shelley Duvall in Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining."
- 75San Francisco ChroniclePeter StackSan Francisco ChroniclePeter StackAlthough the movie goes too far, you can hardly get enough of its delicious atmosphere - and of Turner, in particular, who has never looked better on the big screen. [8 Dec 1989]
- 75Christian Science MonitorDavid SterrittChristian Science MonitorDavid SterrittThe ending is especially inventive, managing to be sour, cynical, sentimental, and upbeat at the same time. [22 Dec 1989]
- 75Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertThe movie treads a dangerous line. There are times when its ferocity threatens to break through the boundaries of comedy - to become so unremitting we find we cannot laugh.
- 75USA TodayMike ClarkUSA TodayMike ClarkThis smashingly filmed and performed one-shot is (uh, so to speak) the year's best romantic comedy. [8 Dec 1989]