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:
36
(33 sources)
36
(33 sources)
-
75
Chicago Tribune
Though trailers for Little Black Book try to sell it as a zany romantic comedy, don't judge this book by its cover. Those who stick with it will be surprised and maybe even laugh in between a tear or two. Read Full Review » -
75
Boston Globe
Actually an above-average farce, at least as featherweight chick flicks go. Read Full Review » -
75
Chicago Sun-Times
The long closing sequence is virtuoso, redefining what went before and requiring Murphy to become a more complex character than she gave any hint of in the opening scenes. Read Full Review » -
70
Chicago Reader
This deviously funny comedy doubles as workplace satire and anthem to the American career woman. Read Full Review » -
67
Portland Oregonian
Still, given the fact that it's August, you could do worse than hide out from the heat with the cute-as-a-bug Murphy, who manages to be funny and entertaining despite the material. Read Full Review » -
60
Empire
Yeah. Light and fluffy it may be, but this is undeniably entertaining stuff. Read Full Review » -
60
-
58
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
The result is a film with an identity crisis, a fluffy romantic farce that gets progressively darker, more destructive and finally so downright demented that the featherweight story line is crushed under the weight of brutal, unpleasant truth. Read Full Review » -
50
USA Today
Hunter is far too talented to waste her time with such mediocre material, as is co-star Kathy Bates, who plays Kippie Kann, an overbearing talk-show host. Read Full Review » -
50
New York Daily News
A screechy chick-flick relationship comedy with a lot of things working for and against it - mostly against it. Read Full Review » -
50
New York Post
The jaw-droppingly nasty second act is intriguing, but it veers into territory so dark that it sucks the air out of the bouncy chick flick that surrounds it, making for one confused -- and confusing -- comedy. Read Full Review » -
50
ReelViews
Ron Livingstone plays his part relatively straight, and, as a result, comes out unscathed. Read Full Review » -
50
The Onion (A.V. Club)
Casual moviegoers looking for a bubbly romantic comedy with Brittany Murphy will get more than they bargained for in Little Black Book, which builds to a nasty twist that's more Lars von Trier than Meg Ryan. Read Full Review » -
50
Christian Science Monitor
A spicy critique of tabloid TV is buried in romantic-comedy material that strains too hard for cuteness. Ditto for Murphy's acting. Read Full Review » -
50
Miami Herald
Together (Hunter/Murphy) they're actually sort of fun to watch, and it's amusing to realize, not quite halfway through the film, that its most potent chemistry exists between them. Read Full Review » -
40
The New York Times
Offering few laughs and a climactic scene of breathtaking cruelty, this plot-heavy movie, directed by Nick Hurran from a screenplay by Melissa Carter and Elisa Bell, draws you into its malignant force field against your will. Read Full Review » -
40
Los Angeles Times
It's an irrefutably bad movie, littered with paper-thin characters, crummy dialogue and a mawkish undercurrent that wells up any time it starts to resemble something smarter and snappier. Yet it is somehow redeemed by Murphy's agreeably quirky performance in a horribly underwritten role. Read Full Review » -
40
TV Guide
Even the inclusion of Simon's classic songs isn't enough to solve all the problems of this comedic misfire. Read Full Review » -
40
Variety
Lacks so much as a single fresh idea; it lacks an entertaining way of presenting its stale ideas, too. Read Full Review » -
38
Premiere
Overall, Little Black Book is the cinematic equivalent of chic lit--mildly amusing, but completely forgettable once you're done with it. Read Full Review » -
38
Philadelphia Inquirer
Looking for plausibility in a farce is like looking for a million dollars in a box of breakfast cereal, but elements of real life can make a comedy resonate instead of thud. Little Black Book does the latter. Read Full Review » -
38
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
The finale just seems hypocritical, even nonsensical in a comedy that derives its few laughs from a farting dog and an accidental gynecological exam. This book is better left closed. Read Full Review » -
30
LA Weekly
Screenwriters Melissa Carter and Erica Bell (Sleepover) have given Murphy -- perhaps the twitchiest actor of her generation --cutesy quirks to play in lieu of a character. Read Full Review » -
30
Village Voice
A mondo product placement in search of a screenplay, the conscious "Working Girl" homage Little Black Book makes the mistake of banking on Brittany Murphy, a Melanie Griffith look-alike with none of Griffith's gawky charms. Read Full Review » -
30
Salon.com
The movie can't distinguish between what's likable and human and funny and what's simply repellent. In that respect, it's just as indiscriminate as the reality TV it shakes its finger at. Read Full Review » -
30
Washington Post
It's not well scripted enough or well acted enough to do much of anything, save make anyone watching really hate Brittany Murphy for being so annoying. Read Full Review » -
30
Wall Street Journal
"Working Girl," is also heard in Little Black Book; it serves only to remind audiences of that far more winning story of triumph in the office. But there are many reminders of what a tiresome effort this is. Read Full Review » -
25
Rolling Stone
Here's a comedy of punishing tedium that pretends to be hip when it's so five minutes ago. Read Full Review » -
25
Entertainment Weekly
The big climax isn't climactic, just hysterical and incoherent. Murphy, with her bug-eyed, love-me mugging, is simply too slight and gawky to play the Everygirl. Read Full Review » -
25
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20
Washington Post
If you think it's worth it to sit there for 97 minutes for three or possibly four laughs, then you are beyond help. Read Full Review » -
20
Dallas Observer
It's a self-satisfied, self-loathing mess that demands you adore and cheer for the very person you come to hate well before its 105 minutes are up. Little Black Book will leave you feeling skuzzy. Read Full Review » -
11
Austin Chronicle
Little Black Book isn't your run-of-the-mill romantic comedy – it's much worse – and, rather disgustingly, the devils on earth it unmasks are all female and vindictive. Read Full Review »
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