57
Metascore
38 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 79TheWrapWilliam BibbianiTheWrapWilliam BibbianiThe House With a Clock in Its Walls is easily Eli Roth’s best motion picture, and that’s not an attempt to damn the film with faint praise. It’s a spooky and amusing piece of family-friendly Halloween cinema, sharply produced and mostly effective, told with skill and panache.
- 70The Hollywood ReporterHarry WindsorThe Hollywood ReporterHarry WindsorAs a family film in that vein it largely succeeds, buoyed by Black’s typical exuberance, Blanchett’s typical slyness and a richly evocative rendering of a Rockwellian suburb sprinkled with goofer dust. Less interesting, as is the way with many audience-avatar YA protagonists (sorry, Harry), is the main character, and Vaccaro’s rather hyper-articulated performance doesn’t help.
- 67Entertainment WeeklyChris NashawatyEntertainment WeeklyChris NashawatyBlack, no surprise, steals the show, manically hamming it up like Harry Houdini on laughing gas, while Roth tries to keep the breakneck pace of his phantasmagoria going. As someone who was growing bored with Roth’s gory shockfests, I say: “Welcome to the kiddie table, Eli.”
- 60VarietyPeter DebrugeVarietyPeter DebrugeWhile not terribly original, it would be fair to call the movie inventive, like one of those eccentrics who’s constantly pestering the patent office with what he thinks are fresh ideas, only to discover that someone else got there first.
- 60Total FilmJosh WinningTotal FilmJosh WinningAn engaging new direction for Eli Roth, who offsets the odd tonal hiccup with plenty of ghoulish delights.
- 60Screen DailyNikki BaughanScreen DailyNikki BaughanDespite a fantastical premise and some truly eye-popping effects, The House With A Clock In Its Walls suffers from post-Potter fatigue; there’s simply nothing here, visual or thematic, that hasn’t been done before.
- 50IndieWireDavid EhrlichIndieWireDavid EhrlichThe House with a Clock in Its Walls is at its best when it foregrounds the adults and gives Black and Blanchett ample time to bicker with one another.
- 50ScreenCrushE. Oliver WhitneyScreenCrushE. Oliver WhitneyI’ve never enjoyed any of Roth’s grisly R-rated movies, but at least those had a distinct vision and style. If only his kid-friendly haunted house movie was as original, it could’ve been a surprising treat.
- 0The Associated PressMark KennedyThe Associated PressMark KennedyThe film somehow manages its own witchcraft in finding the perfect un-sweet spot — it’s too scary for little kids, not scary enough for older ones, not funny or clever enough for their parents, and too redundant for everyone. Poof! Watch the audience disappear.