65
Metascore
22 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90Washington PostDesson ThomsonWashington PostDesson ThomsonThe movie, when it finally gets going, is funny. At times it's hysterical. The great discovery about Noises Off is how tried and tested Frayn's basic formula is. The physical, verbal and situation comedy is universal, no matter who the performers. What counts in this ensemble production is the collective choreography, the great farce machine. In the movie, everyone, Reeve included, more than plays his part.
- 80Chicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumChicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumThe transition from stage to screen may be bumpy in spots, but this movie is much funnier than Bogdanovich's What's Up, Doc?, and the long-take shooting style is executed with fluidity and precision.
- 60Los Angeles TimesPeter RainerLos Angeles TimesPeter RainerWhat you’re left with is a lot of bustle and jabber, and occasional sparks from the cast. Caine has some fine comic moments of high exasperation, there’s great wit in the way Burnett arches her eyebrows and, as a besotted trouper, Denholm Elliott’s puttery calm is like a balm amid the delirium. It’s a delirium that finally seems more appropriate to the sitcom than to the stage.
- 60The New York TimesVincent CanbyThe New York TimesVincent CanbyThere are a number of hefty laughs scattered throughout "Noises Off," Peter Bogdanovich's screen version of Michael Frayn's English stage farce. Yet there are nowhere near as many as the source material deserves and Mr. Bogdanovich's cast might otherwise have earned.
- 60Washington PostRita KempleyWashington PostRita KempleyThe performers all seem to be relishing this sendup, but we're always aware that it is a vehicle better suited to the stage. In trying to open it up some for the screen, Bogdanovich and scriptwriter Marty Kaplan have presented the original play as a series of flashbacks that come upon Caine as he sweats out the play's Broadway opening. All this does is slow the opening and delay the close.
- 50Time OutTime OutAnother theatrical metaphor fails to transfer to the screen. This adaptation of Michael Frayn's stage hit undoubtedly has its moments, but will still disappoint those who laughed themselves silly at the original.
- 40EmpireAngie ErrigoEmpireAngie ErrigoThe jokes start wearing thin, and most of the noisy characters become rather tedious well before the rag-bag of thesps finally pitch up on Broadway.
- 40Austin ChronicleLouis BlackAustin ChronicleLouis BlackThe charm of the film is that's it's so clever a play, but that cleverness wears thin quickly.
- 30Orlando SentinelJay BoyarOrlando SentinelJay BoyarNoisy and (nearly) awful, Noises Off is the sort of movie that gives filmed theater a bad name. Based on Michael Frayn's popular, Tony-nominated play, the screen version is so lame that even without having seen a stage production of the material I can tell that the film doesn't do it justice.