43
Metascore
20 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- With the warmth of Elliott Davis' cinematography and The Band and the Staple Singers on the score, Larger Than Life has much that's appealing for an older, old-fashioned crowd.
- 63ReelViewsJames BerardinelliReelViewsJames BerardinelliIsn't loaded with promise, but at least the producers had the good sense to hire Bill Murray. Jack is the kind of irritable, self- absorbed guy that Murray can play perfectly, and the comedian's presence in Larger than Life lifts it to a considerably higher level than it might have otherwise attained.
- 63San Francisco ChronicleEdward GuthmannSan Francisco ChronicleEdward GuthmannLarger Than Life isn't as bad as it sounds, mostly because Murray is so likable and fundamentally incapable of not being funny.
- 60Chicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumChicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumNot terribly funny, but the intimations of an older, saltier America in the picaresque plot make this watchable.
- 50Time OutTime OutDisgracing itself only with McConaughey's over-extended bit as a psychotic trucker, the film delivers more or less comfortably on what you'd expect, then sits down for a rest.
- 40The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenAlthough the screenplay by Roy Blount Jr. comes up with some potentially sidesplitting situations, the director, Howard Franklin, who shepherded Mr. Murray through the equally limp Quick Change six years ago, methodically subverts them.
- 40VarietyTodd McCarthyVarietyTodd McCarthyHarmless, but also, unfortunately, almost entirely mirthless, this putative comedy about an unsuspecting man obliged to transport a pachyderm cross-country aspires to a winsome charm that never crystallizes, leaving what’s onscreen to wilt before it ever blossoms.
- 38Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertThey say an elephant never forgets, which means that I have an enormous advantage over Tai, who plays Vera, because I plan to forget this movie as soon as convenient.
- One might think that a movie featuring Bill Murray, Matthew McConaughey, Janeane Garofalo and an elephant couldn't be all that bad. Think again. This is a terrible, terrible movie.
- 25Entertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumEntertainment WeeklyLisa SchwarzbaumThe trek is long, the direction (by Murray’s Quick Change colleague Howard Franklin) is soft, the script (by Roy Blount Jr.) is windy, and the occasional laughs are as heavy-footed as the thunking lead pachyderm herself.