Critics Scoreboard
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Average Critic Score:
30
(26 sources)
30
(26 sources)
-
75
San Francisco Chronicle
Lots of people will leave screenings of this movie in disgust -- and laughter is the last thing they will hear on the way out. Read Full Review » -
75
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67
Christian Science Monitor
The young cast members, including Justin Long and Ryan Reynolds, are often spirited and funny, and restaurantgoers are left with a valuable lesson. Read Full Review » -
60
Dallas Observer
Many of the dilemmas that are established never pay off, and there is no clear protagonist or antagonist. To make matters even murkier, the movie is poorly shot in visually uninteresting locations with constant soft focus. That said, it's also damn funny. Read Full Review » -
60
Film Threat
Waiting... is only intermittently funny, but when it is, it's hilarious. Read Full Review » -
58
Portland Oregonian
For every gag that flies there are at least one-and-a-half that don't. Read Full Review » -
50
Village Voice
A day in the life at chain restaurant Shenanigan's, Waiting . . . makes a predictable pit stop to elaborately mess with a creep patron's food but otherwise exceeds expectations by handling the real, soul-sucking fears of the double shift. Read Full Review » -
50
LA Weekly
McKittrick cites "Dazed and Confused" as well as "Clerks" as influences, yet he lacks the raw edge of early Smith and the existential drift of Linklater. And if side-splitting laughter is what you crave, Waiting . . . will leave you hungry for a slice of American Pie. Read Full Review » -
42
Entertainment Weekly
With its sweet stupidity and shoddy production values, Waiting... knowingly evokes bad '80s R-rated comedies, but the differences are telling. Read Full Review » -
42
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
Don't watch this film unless you have a high tolerance and an undemanding appreciation for penis jokes and humor based more on a capacity to disgust than to surprise. Read Full Review » -
40
The Hollywood Reporter
Doesn't serve up enough laughs to build a theatrical following but could find life on video as a takeout item. Read Full Review » -
40
The Onion (A.V. Club)
There's real potential in the premise of young, unmotivated screw-ups logging time at a dead-end restaurant job--a hash-slinging "Office Space," basically--but first-time writer-director Rob McKittrick makes it look like a homemade sitcom laced with profanity. Read Full Review » -
40
Variety
The wait for laughs lasts the entire length of Waiting ..., first feature from writer-director Rob McKittrick that aims to be a "Clerks"-type comedy set in a chain restaurant but ends up somewhere below a "Porky's" sequel. Read Full Review » -
40
Los Angeles Times
The filmmaker captures a certain exaggerated verisimilitude, but the comedy is surprisingly flat. The cast sells the occasional one-liner, but a Reynolds smirk can take you only so far. Read Full Review » -
38
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38
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38
Miami Herald
The movie is a clumsy and uninspired mess, which is not to say that it's not funny. Read Full Review » -
30
Chicago Reader
It's a great premise for comedy, but this thing is too dumb to do it justice. Read Full Review » -
25
New York Post
Those endless end credits reveal that McKittrick previously worked at Steak & Ale, Roadhouse Grill and Friday's. He may well need to return to his line of work after a debut as dismal as this one. Read Full Review » -
25
USA Today
Geared to 16-year-olds who can't name the governor of their state, this movie ought to be closed down by the health department. Read Full Review » -
25
Chicago Tribune
Could have been a funny movie. There are a few truths about food-service that McKittrick gets right but doesn't fully exploit. Read Full Review » -
25
New York Daily News
This warmed-over slop feels as if it's been congealing for twice that long. Read Full Review » -
20
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0
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0
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0
Premiere
Waiting is, at its root, a heaping handful of almost-funny ideas cobbled together without much skill for shaping a story. The result is that one in five provokes a smile, while the other four make the viewers slightly sick that they now have to remember what they just saw. Read Full Review »
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