Fishburne excels in his triple-threat roles as actor, director and adapter of his own play, and his cast glows under his direction.
70
L.A. WeeklyF. X. Feeney
L.A. WeeklyF. X. Feeney
May lack any transcendent point that would make it exceptional, but it is certainly a worthy start, and worth catching.
63
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
Chicago TribuneMichael Wilmington
Strong, hard, dirty, funny, moving atmospheric and laced with scabrously musical street dialogue.
63
New York PostLou Lumenick
New York PostLou Lumenick
Basically it's an acting exercise - a one-set rendition of that old stage and movie standby, the ex-convict struggling to go straight who's tempted to attempt one last score.
50
Village VoiceMichael Atkinson
Village VoiceMichael Atkinson
While the line-readings are often dead-on, Fishburne's movie suffers from the usual one-room claustrophobia and Mametian repetitions.
50
VarietyRobert Koehler
VarietyRobert Koehler
A film that ultimately feels stagebound and excessively talky, but which showcases an exceptional performance.
50
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
As urban gangster drama, Once in the Life is way below mundane, and Fishburne's direction exceeds the rookie jitters.
40
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
TV Guide MagazineKen Fox
The good news is that Fishburne also stars, and has recruited a talented group of actors to flesh out the cast; the bad news is that no one seems to have been on hand to help out with the rest of film.
40
Film.comHenry Cabot Beck
Film.comHenry Cabot Beck
Doesn't have a lot to offer that hasn't been done better -- and worse -- in hundreds of ghetto-sink shoot-em-ups.