76
Metascore
15 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- An understated gem. Writer-director Jeff Nichols, making his feature debut, has created a richly textured world.
- 83The A.V. ClubNoel MurrayThe A.V. ClubNoel MurrayWell-plotted, with a strong lead performance by Michael Shannon, and a fair amount of authentic regional flavor. It isn't really meant to be a treatise on Southern life. At heart, it's a country-fried genre film, minus the peppery white gravy.
- The film is a here-and-now American potboiler and a stripped-down parable that can be appreciated by any culture.
- 75TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonaghTV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonaghThe cast deliver consistently fine, subtle performances, underscored by Ben Nichols' mournfully melodic guitar score.
- 75PremiereGlenn KennyPremiereGlenn KennyIt's rare that a picture that deals with as much tragedy as this one also manages to convey as much warmth to its characters.
- 75San Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoSan Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoAn austere rural landscape, festering hatred, class tensions, terse dialogue - these are common currency in indie movies these days. Shotgun Stories uses them all, but manages to stand out from the crowd.
- 70VarietyEddie CockrellVarietyEddie CockrellThesping is pitch-perfect across the board.
- 70New York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinNew York Magazine (Vulture)David EdelsteinThe movie makes you empathize with the rage that drives these young men to violence--but it also makes you see how manly action wipes out their individuality, their uniqueness, and turns them into archetypal meatheads.
- 70L.A. WeeklyL.A. WeeklyIn this tense, lyrical and bone-spare slice-of-death drama by writer-director Jeff Nichols, Shannon gets a role tailored to his lanky Middle American boyishness and the demons peering from behind it.
- 63New York PostLou LumenickNew York PostLou LumenickFeatures a riveting performance by Michael Shannon as oldest son Son. He's definitely an actor to watch.