58
Metascore
27 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75Chicago TribuneMichael PhillipsChicago TribuneMichael PhillipsIf older kids and adults seek out this picture, which 20th Century Fox and Walden Media clearly aren't sure how to sell, they may well find themselves drawn into a subterranean world of considerable imagination.
- 75ReelViewsJames BerardinelliReelViewsJames BerardinelliCity of Ember has almost anything one could want from a science fiction-based family adventure film: likeable characters, an imaginative setting, and a fast pace.
- 75Seattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam ArnoldSeattle Post-IntelligencerWilliam ArnoldIt scores few points for originality, but it's a fuzzier, less pretentious and more enjoyable movie.
- 75The A.V. ClubNathan RabinThe A.V. ClubNathan RabinEmber is seldom riveting, but it's consistently compelling, and its uncompromising literal and metaphorical darkness renders its climax enormously satisfying.
- 70Washington PostWashington PostIt's not an entirely convincing trip, but it is the sort of satisfying movie you wished they would make more often.
- 63Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertIt's innocent and sometimes kind of charming. The sets are entertaining. There are parallels in appearance and theme to a low-rent "Dark City."
- 63Philadelphia InquirerSteven ReaPhiladelphia InquirerSteven ReaAll the running, the hiding, the escaping (from giant moles, from giant Murray) are decidedly less exciting, and compelling, than City of Ember wants to be.
- 60EmpireDan JolinEmpireDan JolinWith Ember's hydro-electro-punk charms, Kenan's convinced us he's one of Hollywood's most exciting (and excited!) visualists. But on the evidence of this, his storytelling skills still need honing.
- 50Rolling StonePeter TraversRolling StonePeter TraversYou long for things to go bump in the night, but the movie muffles every risk in a blanket of bland.
- None of this means that the film is necessarily enjoyable to watch, however, which is often the problem when the rigors of inspired storytelling can't live up to an imaginatively designed filmic world.