Renaissance Man is an exceptionally unoriginal comedy with a heart-tugging streak as big as Fort Bragg, but it succeeds perfectly well on its own unambitious terms.
60
The New York TimesJanet Maslin
The New York TimesJanet Maslin
Inherently condescending, and finally awash in warm-bath sentimentality, this setup never goes out of style.
50
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
The big underachiever turns out to be DeVito, who is incapable of exhibiting believable warmth and complexity, or, indeed, of playing anyone who is not a cartoon.
From the ad campaign, we pretty much know how things are going to turn out, and her pedestrian attempts at subplots are even more transparent than those in "Awakenings."
40
EmpireKim Newman
EmpireKim Newman
This is a feel good movie which is too mechanically put together to make you feel anything.
40
TimeRichard Corliss
TimeRichard Corliss
Warm-hearted humanism is glopped all over Renaissance Man in the hopes that we won't notice that the story makes no sense.
40
Variety
Variety
Marshall has tried to do too much, dealing with certain subplots too sparingly to deliver on their promise.
25
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Chicago Sun-TimesRoger Ebert
Renaissance Man is a labored, unconvincing comedy that seems cobbled together out of the half-understood remnants of its betters.