Critic Reviews

• Wesley Morris, Boston Globe

  This is an exceedingly friendly portrait, a disarming one, too. The filmmaker invites us to reconsider the author as someone warmer and less intimidating than his body of work. On that count, Wrestling With Angels succeeds.

• Hedy Weiss, Chicago Sun-Times

  The final portrait is unquestionably entertaining, very occasionally teasing and largely adoring. Because Kushner is a devoted political commentator, his thoughts on everything from America's role in the world to the nature of Zionism are on full display.

• Marta Barber, Miami Herald

  Wrestling with Angels is personal and intimate, insightful about Kushner as well as instructive about his collection of works.

• Steven Winn, San Francisco Chronicle

  Wrestling With Angels is a canny piece of filmmaking, sure to absorb both audiences familiar with Kushner's plays and those who know little or nothing about him.

• Joey Guerra, Houston Chronicle

  A sentimental valentine to a man who, underneath it all, simply wants to move people with his message.

• Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times

  This uncritical cinematic embrace doesn't do justice to a playwright who never met a Brechtian dialectic he didn't want to ponder more deeply.

• Gabe Leibowitz, Film and Felt

  Beyond it's educational value for those unfamiliar with Kushner's work, politics, and sexuality (like myself), there's not much to grab onto here.

• Doris Toumarkine, Film Journal International

  A rich and uplifting film.

• Marrit Ingman, Austin Chronicle

  [Director Freida Lee] Mock's approach to Kushner is so casual and friendly that it never steps outside of his own life for a glimpse of its context.

• Marc Mohan, Oregonian

  A worthwhile but imperfect film.

• Timothy Knight, Reel.com

  Flaws aside, Wrestling With Angels: Playwright Tony Kushner is still worth a look for its glimpse at one of the leading voices of 21st century American drama.

• Bob Strauss, Los Angeles Daily News

  While Wrestling With Angels is definitely a worthwhile experience, you'd expect it to be a more dramatic one, considering what Kushner has produced.

• Steven Leigh Morris, L.A. Weekly

  It's a loving film, but Kushner's own characters are more richly textured than Mock's depiction of the playwright and the divided, divisive world he's trying to fathom.

• Francesca Dinglasan, Boxoffice Magazine

  Although the analysis is far from deep, Mock's film succeeds as an above-average introduction to the playwright, especially to an audience unfamiliar with his work.

• Eric Lurio, Greenwich Village Gazette

  Even if you're not a fan of his work, it's a good thing to see, and is worth a view when it gets on TV sometime in the new year.

Read all 15 critic reviews