Critic Reviews

• Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times

  Pain plus time, this film reminds us, can result in poetry.

• Ty Burr, Boston Globe

  What was Sturm and Drang then veers close to camp and kitsch now.

• Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic

  The story of a talented but not yet mature young man who stumbles upon the topic that would lead to his fame: love, and the loss of it.

• Ben Sachs, Chicago Reader

  Like a porcelain dish commemorating a famous person, this biopic has little to teach us about the great German writer but sure makes him look adorable.

• Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer

  More diverting than it is deep...

• Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

  You needn't know a thing about Goethe or his works to enjoy the picture.

• Witney Seibold, CraveOnline

  It's just as gorgeously shot, just as clever, just as frothy and dynamic as the period pieces of 15-20 years ago.

• James Plath, Movie Metropolis

  Fans of "Shakespeare in Love" should receive this one warmly. I would watch it again.

• Joseph Proimakis, Movies for the Masses

  full review at Movies for the Masses

• Calvin Wilson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

  An old-fashioned romance that's easy to like even if you have no interest in German literature, illegal duels or the more romantic aspects of committing suicide.

• Justin Strout, Orlando Weekly

  An Ashton Kutcher/Katherine Heigl rom-com vehicle with pretty dresses.

• Frank Swietek, One Guy's Opinion

  So long as one doesn't take it as a history lesson,...a moderately enjoyable period piece...an exercise in quasi-biography that's engaging in an old-fashioned way.

• Chris Hewitt (St. Paul), St. Paul Pioneer Press

  A lively, deeply felt film that convinces us a historical figure's life was as compelling as the work he achieved.

• Kelly Vance, East Bay Express

  Attempts to do for the German romantic poet what Amadeus did for Mozart, with limited success.

Read all 14 critic reviews