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Hillbilly Elegy

2020

Ron Howard

Amy Adams, Gabriel Basso, Glenn Close, Haley Bennett ...

6.0

3,947

Drama A man recalls his life growing up in the Midwest with Appalachian values. J.D. Vance, a former Marine from southern Ohio and current Yale Law student, is on the verge of landing his dream job when a family crisis forces him to return to the home he’s tried to forget. J.D. must navigate the complex dynamics of his Appalachian family, including his volatile relationship with his mother Bev (Amy Adams), who’s struggling with addiction. ... [+]

	Media	Author	Review
		Alonso Duralde The Wrap	"Yokel hokum (...) a movie that always seems to be on the outside looking in, indicating rather than understanding."
		Brian Truitt USA Today	"An acting master-clash between Glenn Close and Amy Adams (...) the narrative suffers from an overemphasis on Adams as her abusive daughter dealing with drug addiction (...) Rating: ★★ (out of 4)"
		Peter Bradshaw The Guardian	"This is a well-meant story of someone pulling himself up by his bootstraps, with some help from his grandma. But it feels contrived and self-conscious (...) Rating: ★★ (out of 5)"
		Chris Barsanti Slant	"'Hillbilly Elegy' feels like a bland feel-good story rather than one part of a longer tragedy with no clear end (...) Rating: ★ (out of 4)"
		Peter Travers ABC News	"With greater emphasis on simplicity instead of Hollywood showboating, 'Hillbilly Elegy' might have been more than a missed opportunity."
		Fionnuala Halligan Screendaily	"Ron Howard dispenses with any such nuance to deliver an raucous redneck potboiler"
		Owen Gleiberman Variety	"As long as Close is acting up an award-worthy storm (her performance is actually quite meticulous), 'Hillbilly Elegy' is never less than alive"
		Katie Rife AV Club	"Hillbilly Elegy just reinforces the stereotypes it insists it’s illuminating. If you want to watch a sensitive character study about intergenerational trauma in Appalachia, there’s Barbara Loden’s Wanda"
		Sheri Linden The Hollywood Reporter	"Elegy embraces the emotional messiness of a heart-wringing country song, but lacks a haunting refrain to get under your skin."
		David Ehrlich IndieWire	"The most generous reading of Ron Howard’s anodyne and somehow apolitical Netflix adaptation is that it’s trying to sand the edges off this story and do Vance the favor of making him seem like a good example"
		Jason Bailey The Playlist	"It’s the prestige picture equivalent of a Michael Bay movie – when it’s non-stop action (or, in this case, non-stop 'conflict'), there’s no time or opportunity to create characters of any consequence"
		Matt Zoller Seitz rogerebert.com	"J.D. Vance's memoir about Appalachian life has been condensed into an affecting but not-too-distinguished story of the cycles of addiction and recovery (…) Rating: ★★½ (out of 4)"
		Johnny Oleksinski New York Post	"The movie 'Hillbilly Elegy' is a series of rotten choices —occasionally by the characters, but mostly by Hollywood (…) Rating: ★★ (out of 4)"

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