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Spiderhead

2022

Joseph Kosinski

Chris Hemsworth, Miles Teller, Jurnee Smollett, Tess Haubrich ...

4.7

3,943

Sci-Fi. Thriller This is set in the near future, when convicts are offered the chance to volunteer as medical subjects in hopes of shortening their sentences. When one prisoner finds himself the test patient for a new pharmaceutical capable of generating feelings of love, he begins questioning the reality of his emotions and sets out to discover the truth.

	Author	Review
United States	Carlos Aguilar The Wrap	"'Spiderhead' can be entertaining as long as you don't probe too deeply (...) It's neither essential or singular enough to merit much attention beyond its first weekend of release"	NEU
United Kingdom	Nick De Semlyen Empire	"A highly talky, at times upsetting prison drama (...) You can feel the strain of its expansion from novella form, but it's just about worth a visit (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	POS
United States	Frank Scheck The Hollywood Reporter	"It's a thriller at times, but also a wickedly funny dark comedy. And it features a nostalgia-inducing yacht rock soundtrack that slyly comments on the action (...) An unclassifiable good time"	POS
United States	David Ehrlich IndieWire	"For a movie so preoccupied with the choices that people can make, 'Spiderhead' invariably makes the least interesting ones available to it"	NEG
United States	Robert Daniels The Playlist	"While you will get sturdy popcorn pleasures from 'Spiderhead', you'll also leave wondering what more possibilities Hemsworth holds as an actor once he lays his hammer down"	NEU
United States	Ross Bonaime Collider	"With an extremely intriguing concept and fantastic performances all around the board, Kosinski has for the second time this year made one of the best movies of this summer"	POS
United States	Ethan Vestby The Film Stage	"With the final images, it's easy to remember the good eye Kosinski has. One just wishes everything about the film could be in sync"	NEU
United Kingdom	Peter Bradshaw The Guardian	"Having stretched out the story idea to feature-film length, the film doesn't really give the sense that it knows where it is going (…) Rating: ★★ (out of 5)"	NEG
United States	Sarah Milner SlashFilm	"'Spiderhead' is a compelling story that had me hooked from the opening shot to the closing credits. Fans of sci-fi, satire, and all things weird —this one is for you"	POS
Canada	Chris Agar Screen Rant	"It may not do anything innovative from a filmmaking perspective, but [it] is proof there's material to be mined from well-known ground when talented people are bringing the narrative to life (…) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"	NEU
United States	Pete Hammond Deadline	"Kosinski shows he has the chops to pull off wildly different and intriguing projects without losing the tricky tone that movies like this far more modest one must traverse"	POS
United States	Peter Debruge Variety	"All the ingredients are there for a daring satire, but the icky execution gets every creative decision wrong"	NEG
United States	Siddhant Adlakha IndieWire	"'Spiderhead' is loaded with original sci-fi ideas, and while it may not stick the landing, it makes for an intriguing experience"	NEU
Canada	Chris Bumbray JoBlo	"A fun, well-shot genre flick that's more cerebral than you’d expect. It offers star Chris Hemsworth a chance to branch out beyond his action hero bonafides"	POS
United States	Kristy Puchko Mashable	"Is that all there is? Watching 'Spiderhead', I couldn't help but wonder and wish for —well— more (...) And yet, this movie is aggressively fine. It's as if it's all algorithm, little else. And maybe that's enough?"	NEU
United States	Katie Rife Polygon	"[The film's] creators miss an opportunity to give audiences something truly thought-provoking to chew on"	NEG
United States	Jordan Hoffman TV Guide	"It's also good to see Chris Hemsworth do some actual acting (...) He's pure charisma one minute, menacing mad scientist the next. I'd go so far as to say this is the best thing he's ever done"	POS
United States	Nick Allen rogerebert.com	"Though it starts with promise, 'Spiderhead' treats its most intriguing elements like an afterthought, and misses the opportunity to be a memorable oddity aside from its disappointments (…) Rating: ★★ (out of 4)"	NEU
United Kingdom	Tim Grierson Screendaily	"Joseph Kosinski [ponders] existential questions about free will and second chances within the appealing framework of a high-tech prison drama that doubles as an evil-scientist horror film (...) Both engaging and disposable"	POS
United States	Courtney Howard AV Club	"While we can likely predict where the story will lead, the journey taken is an engaging adventure guided by intuitive creators"	NEU

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