69
Metascore
4 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75Movie NationRoger MooreMovie NationRoger MooreCitizen Penn isn’t a wholly balanced portrait of the “do gooder” star and humanitarian. It flirts with turning towards hagiography, here and there. But what it manages to get across is that dismissing Penn and his passion for philanthropy of this sort is a mistake, that he’s sincere, committed to the long game, and an impatient man-of-action pretty good at articulating why you should pitch in, too, in whatever way works.
- 70Film ThreatAlex SavelievFilm ThreatAlex SavelievAlthough Penn is the focal point of Citizen Penn, the real citizens of this story are the Haitians. They are resilient, optimistic, and refuse to be labeled as victims. I do wish that we got to meet some of them a bit more intimately, that Hardy delved a little deeper into Haiti’s sociopolitical history. As it stands, it functions as a perfectly serviceable call to action, an extended, heartfelt PSA that neither glamorizes nor demonizes the actor.
- 70The New York TimesGlenn KennyThe New York TimesGlenn KennySean Penn’s work in Haiti after its devastating 2011 earthquake continues to this day. And this new documentary Citizen Penn is a revealing, engaging chronicle of the actor’s activism.
- 70VarietyOwen GleibermanVarietyOwen GleibermanSome of this is stirring stuff, and all of it is worth learning about, but as a documentary Citizen Penn is more diligent than riveting.