Bad Words | Rotten Tomatoes

Bad Words

R

Released Mar 28, 2014

1 hr. 25 min.

Comedy

Drama

List

66%

134 Reviews

Tomatometer

61%

25,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Guy Trilby (Jason Bateman), a 40-year-old misanthrope, makes waves at a regional spelling bee when, due to a loophole in the rules, he is allowed to enter -- and later wins. Hurling insults at every turn, Guy advances to the national contest in Los Angeles, accompanied by a reporter (Kathryn Hahn) who wants to discover his hidden motives for entering the bee. As the competition gears up, friendless Guy inexplicably forms a bond with a young speller who is feeling parental pressure to win.

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Critics Consensus

Scabrously funny and gleefully amoral, Bad Words boasts one of Jason Bateman's best performances -- and proves he's a talented director in the bargain.

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cbcguy

Hilarious from start to finish and had some heart towards the end, Jason Bateman killed it in this movie.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/18/24

Full Review

Dirk D

2014 was apparently the last gasp of a world that could stand to look at itself with clear eyes and say ***ksucker. That moment lives in this movie, while we go on to live in a winter of Disney.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/29/23

Full Review

J P

Wow, what a paper thin, predictable movie. I had high expectations for a film that could have been so much better. Terrible editing, unrealistic plot, an inappropriate "friendship" and it rips off a few other movies. Jason Bateman mumbles his way through a flimsy film that seems to begin in the middle. A HUGE disappointment.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

12/10/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Perfect movie. When movies had balls.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/08/23

Full Review

Rose D

Pretty good. Jason Bateman plays against type and the overall conceit of the movie is deliciously irreverent. I thought the ending could have been more interesting and would have elevated the narrative overall. Some witty banter, some cheeky bad-boy Bateman and a boring ending.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

09/15/23

Full Review

Sean M

Bad Words directed by, produced by, and stars Jason Bateman in his very charmingly jerky character that feels wrong to love, but makes you anyways. Bad Words shows a very important message of not repeating history in a way that has been done before, but not like this. The movie gives the view of a selfishly angry middle-aged man trying to take the crown as a national champion in a spelling bee, what makes this movie so special is how every single evil moment and every subjective comment leaves you feeling a weird sense of joy with an ending that mostly wraps everything up in a way that leaves you smiling. Bad Words although uses standard messaging, creates its own with it and leaves a grin spanning from ear to ear.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

07/18/23

Full Review

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Jason Bateman

Director

Jason Bateman

Guy Trilby

Kathryn Hahn

Jenny Widgeon

Rohan Chand

Chaitanya Chopra

Philip Baker Hall

Dr. Bowman

Allison Janney

Dr. Bernice Deagan

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Bad Words: Official Clip - A Little Liar

3:15

Bad Words: Official Clip - These Are Not Light Pants

2:47

Bad Words: Official Clip - Chaitanya the Champion

2:38

Bad Words: Official Clip - Like an Elephant's Trunk

1:53

Bad Words: Official Clip - Give These To Your Mother

2:38

Bad Words: Official Clip - Take Him Out!

2:10

Bad Words: Official Clip - Insults and Nipples

3:16

Bad Words: Official Clip - Don't Look at Me

2:20

Bad Words: Official Clip - Misspelling Bee

3:05

Bad Words: Official Clip - Autofellatio

1:46

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Critics Consensus: Noah is a Fresh Take on an Old Tale

Video: Jason Bateman is a Terrible Speller

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Wesley Morris

Grantland

I didn't like anything about the movie before discovering what Guy is up to. I actively hated it after I figured out what was actually going on.

Apr 3, 2014

Full Review

Robert Everett-Green

Globe and Mail

The laughs in this film are all mean-spirited or just frat-boy gross.

Rated: 1/4

Mar 28, 2014

Full Review

Peter Howell

Toronto Star

Almost unrelenting in its takedown both of an American institution and the country's obsession with victories big and small, Bad Words is more misanthropic fantasy than satiric fiction.

Rated: 2.5/4

Mar 27, 2014

Full Review

Richard Propes

TheIndependentCritic.com

Bad Words casts a hilarious spell.

Rated: 3.5/4.0

Sep 2, 2020

Full Review

Joanne Laurier

World Socialist Web Site

The representation of super-focused oddballs in Bateman's film is not terribly intriguing.

Aug 13, 2020

Full Review

Damond Fudge

KCCI (Des Moines, IA)

Bad Words is utterly wrong in all the right ways ... a small movie with a huge mouth. When you aren't laughing, you'll find yourself smiling at its sweetness.

Jun 29, 2020

Full Review

Read all reviews

Synopsis

Guy Trilby (Jason Bateman), a 40-year-old misanthrope, makes waves at a regional spelling bee when, due to a loophole in the rules, he is allowed to enter -- and later wins. Hurling insults at every turn, Guy advances to the national contest in Los Angeles, accompanied by a reporter (Kathryn Hahn) who wants to discover his hidden motives for entering the bee. As the competition gears up, friendless Guy inexplicably forms a bond with a young speller who is feeling parental pressure to win.

Director: Jason Bateman
Executive Producer: Edward H. Hamm Jr., James Garavente, Darren M. Demetre
Screenwriter: Andrew Dodge
Distributor: Focus Features
Production Co: Darko Entertainment, MXN Entertainment, Aggregate Films
Rating: R (Crude and Sexual Content|Brief Nudity|Language)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 28, 2014, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jul 21, 2015
Box Office (Gross USA): $7.8M

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