Forrest Gump Reunion Movie Receives Disappointing Rotten Tomatoes Score

Tom Hanks, Robin Wright and Robert Zemeckis’ long-awaited Forrest Gump “reunion,” Here, simply isn’t landing with the critics, as is indicated by its horrible Rotten Tomatoes score. The head-scratching experimental decision to film the movie in a single-frame format — not to be confused with the single-shot “oner” — has resulted in a poor Tomatometer rating of only 33% against 33 reviews currently posted to RT. MovieWeb’s own Will Sayre says Here is “a weird, bold film that somehow comes up short.” And that’s being kind.

Meanwhile, Rafer Guzman of Newsday writes in his critique: “Zemeckis deserves credit for trying to wrap his arms around some very large themes — the misty past, the unpredictable present and that slightly spooky feeling of just being alive.” But then SlashFilm’s Chris Evangelista accuses Hanks, Wright and Zemeckis’ latest collaboration of being fake, saying:

“Throw in all that digital de-aging, and
Here
ends up blanketed in an unshakable feeling of phoniness.”

Derek Smith of Slant Magazine gives Here one of its worst scores at 1.5 out of 4 stars and writes:

“Here is all moments, some small and many big, but it’s lacking in gravitas, concerned as it is with tugging at our heartstrings by serving up little more than signifiers that we can project their own memories or personal baggage into.”

Here Could Be Headed for a Heartbreak

Here’s de-aging and single-frame approach may have doomed director Robert Zemeckis’ latest project. Fortunately, for Tom Hanks and Robin Wright’s reunion, Here is opening on a weekend that doesn’t boast one of the fall’s blockbuster hopefuls, so, at least, there’s a chance it might compete with new titles like Juror #2 and the re-release of Godzilla Minus One. But there isn’t any question that the critics’ reviews aren’t doing Here any favors. Odie Henderson of the Boston Globe writes:

“Couple the broad acting and cliché-ridden screenplay with the fixed-frame format, and Here comes off like a bad sitcom, or even worse, a school play made by a bunch of fifth-graders who decided to tackle Eugene O’Neill and Death of a Salesman.”

Mashable’s Kristy Puchko gives Here a little credit, but not enough to avoid serving it a well-deserved “splat” on Rotten Tomatoes. “Here is an experiment in framing and concept that fails,” Puchko writes. “And yet, I’m in awe that Zemeckis did it. Even with the movie’s rough edges, his passion and sentimentality is as clear as ever.” And then TheWrap’s William Bibbiani throws the film back under the bus and compares it to questionable “dinner theater.”

Ryan Lattanzio of IndieWire dishes out one of Here’s rare scores which isn’t rotten. “If you’ve ever passed through or lived in a house and wondered who was there before you Here will resonate,” Lattanzio writes in the film’s defense. “But if you have no curiosity, then there’s nothing, not a thing, ultimately here for you.”

Here opens in theaters on November 1. And for those who are still straddling the fence about whether they should see Hanks, Wright and Zemeckis’ reunion in theaters, be sure to check out MovieWeb’s detailed review of Here. It proclaims that the “single-frame experiment in life-spanning storytelling yields mixed results.” At the end of the day, though, writer Will Sayre gave the single-frame mishmash 3 out of 5 stars (6/10). So maybe it’s not all bad?

A young couple expecting their first child takes in the husband’s estranged, ailing mother. Set in a single room, the story spans multiple generations, capturing moments of love, loss, and everyday life in the same space. Directed by Robert Zemeckis and featuring performances by Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, and Paul Bettany, the film uses groundbreaking technology to de-age actors and presents a unique, stationary camera perspective throughout its runtime.

Runtime

104 Minutes

Studio(s)

MiraMax , Playtone , ImageMovers

Distributor(s)

TriStar Pictures

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