52
Metascore
14 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 80The GuardianJordan HoffmanThe GuardianJordan HoffmanCarrie Pilby the film is 100% Carrie Pilby the character, a living quirk machine that in a lesser actor’s hands might be insufferable.
- 75The Film StageJared MobarakThe Film StageJared MobarakThankfully Johnson got someone like Powley to take on the central role because it’s through her honesty that we allow the rest to be somewhat two-dimensional.
- 70Village VoiceSerena DonadoniVillage VoiceSerena DonadoniIn her directorial debut, Susan Johnson balances the character's haughty brilliance and aimless privilege with an underlying vulnerability.
- 67The PlaylistNoel MurrayThe PlaylistNoel MurrayThis “emotionally immature braniac” character is funny and heartbreaking in equal measure. Carrie Pilby is special. “Carrie Pilby” is less so.
- 60The Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinThe Hollywood ReporterLeslie FelperinAt its worst, the film oozes the sickly smugness of a self-help pamphlet, but when it relaxes its didactic grip and lets the actors take control it can be quite charming.
- 60Screen DailyWendy IdeScreen DailyWendy IdeThis is not a film which challenges the stereotypes of teen coming of age movies. However the dialogue is sharp, and Powley’s comic timing is well-tuned.
- 50VarietyDennis HarveyVarietyDennis HarveyLimply cute, with underdeveloped subplots and secondary characters, this sitcomish dramedy shares the source material’s primary fault: For a story about a supposed genius, it’s not all that clever or complicated.
- 50Los Angeles TimesKatie WalshLos Angeles TimesKatie WalshCarrie Pilby is a studiously quirky affair, but only the natural charm of Powley salvages that tone. The film swings wildly from melancholy to wacky, never truly melding the two; it somehow also lacks verve and energy.
- 50The New York TimesBen KenigsbergThe New York TimesBen KenigsbergIn 2015, Bel Powley stole Sundance with her performance in “The Diary of a Teenage Girl.” Carrie Pilby poses a tougher test. Might she single-handedly redeem 90 minutes of contrived nonsense?
- 0Slant MagazineDiego SemereneSlant MagazineDiego SemereneThe film is essentially an exercise in forcing a female genius back into her proper place of dependence on both the father figure and the Prince Charming.