Critic Reviews

• Leslie Felperin, Variety

  Films aimed at families usually plant some jokes to ensure accompanying adults aren't bored witless by an endless stream of goofy gags, but Horrid Henry: The Movie flies defiantly against this trend.

• Derek Adams, Time Out

  'Horrid Henry' is indelibly flawed and disorderly in tone but not devoid of rambunctious charm.

• Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media

  Forgettable British kid comedy is pretty horrid indeed.

• Shaun Munro, What Culture

  The bogeys and slime are deployed with a wild enthusiasm that doesn't transpire into the diabolically lacking script.

• Jason Best, Movie Talk

  Filmed in eye-popping cartoony colours and with eye-popping cartoony acting to match... the kids mug enthusiastically in school nativity play fashion amid fidgety, hyper-active camerawork that suggests the director has eaten too many blue Smarties.

• Allan Hunter, Daily Express

  It is incredibly noisy, messy, completely exhausting and feels as if it is never going to end.

• Philip French, Observer [UK]

  A broad, noisy comedy based on a series of popular books and TV films about a rebellious primary-school boy in revolt against his family, school and all things genteel.

• Kate Stables, Total Film

  Kids will enjoy the gobby tween attitude and energy, but the paper-thin plot and extraneous 3D antics don't provide the solid laughs of, say, Diary Of A Wimpy Kid.

• Graham Young, Birmingham Mail

  The action is shot in fits and starts, with silly songs trying to camouflage the lack of a serviceable script. School of Rock, it's not.

• David Edwards, Daily Mirror [UK]

  It's a cheap, cheerless and laugh-free disaster zone with a woeful script and the sort of performances you'd be disappointed to see in a school play. In a word...horrid!

• Derek Malcolm, This is London

  Ought to be better than it is.

• Anthony Quinn, Independent

  Unutterably feeble-minded and unfunny.

• Catherine Jones, Liverpool Echo

  Oh dear, oh dear. Rarely has a film title been more fitting than this disappointing cinematic outing based on the mischievous character created by author Francesca Simon.

• Christopher Tookey, Daily Mail [UK]

  Three decades fewer on the clock would doubtless lighten my perspective, but the slapstick here seems gauche, while the script fails to provide the game young cast with much in the way of character or comedy.

• Peter Bradshaw, Guardian [UK]

  A wasted opportunity.

• Roz Laws, Birmingham Post

  I hate to say it, but Hollywood did it better with Diary of a Wimpy Kid.

• David Gritten, Daily Telegraph

  Shrill, over-eager and frankly disappointing.

• David Aldridge, Radio Times

  Not quite Horrid, but this Henry comes close. Accompanying adults may wish they'd opted for triple detention.

• Tim Evans, Sky Movies

  There's not much for mums and dads - this doesn't attempt any cute Pixar-style adult-pitched gags - but younger audiences will revel in the mischievous manipulations of a negative role model.

• Matthew Turner, ViewLondon

  Over-indulgent children's comedy that's let down by a sloppy script, patchy direction and some poor performances, though it does have the occasional moment and its target audience will probably enjoy it.

Read all 21 critic reviews