75
Metascore
38 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90SlateDavid EdelsteinSlateDavid EdelsteinIt's irresistible, damn it. Mainstream comedies should all be this funny and tender and deftly performed.
- 90Washington PostDesson ThomsonWashington PostDesson ThomsonHilarious, touching and wonderfully dyspeptic.
- 89Austin ChronicleMarc SavlovAustin ChronicleMarc SavlovAbout a Boy knows exactly what it wants to do: It wants to make you smile, and grin, and then laugh with recognition, and it manages all three, again and again.
- 88USA TodayClaudia PuigUSA TodayClaudia PuigAbout a Boy is a rarity in many ways. It's a well-written, witty film whose memorable characters grapple with the nature of family, love, friendship and despair. Even its soundtrack, by Badly Drawn Boy, is perfectly pitched.
- 88Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertWe have all the action heroes and Method script-chewers we need right now, but the Cary Grant department is understaffed, and Hugh Grant shows here that he is more than a star, he is a resource.
- 83Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanEntertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanHugh Grant has grown up, holding on to his lightness and witty cynicism but losing the stuttering sherry-club mannerisms that were once his signature. In doing so, he has blossomed into the rare actor who can play a silver-tongued sleaze with a hidden inner decency.
- 80Chicago ReaderJ.R. JonesChicago ReaderJ.R. JonesIlluminating with their energy and wit.
- 80New Times (L.A.)Robert WilonskyNew Times (L.A.)Robert WilonskyPerhaps the most remarkable aspect of About a Boy is how substantial it plays -- as a feel-good film with weight, a knowing comedy with dramatic depth.
- 75New York Daily NewsJami BernardNew York Daily NewsJami BernardA comedy hit, but its secret is that it delves deeper than the usual summer fare.
- 60VarietyDerek ElleyVarietyDerek ElleyPleasant and engaging, rather than laugh-out-loud funny or emotionally involving.