From its on-the-nose title to the standard biopic conventions Rebel in the Rye/i> could probably best be described by Caulfield himself: 'You never saw so many phonies in all your life.'

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Mar 1, 2021

For all its dependence on the truth, Rebel in the Rye comes across feeling like a big phony.

Full Review | Original Score: 1.5/5 | Sep 28, 2020

Director Danny Strong sticks to a standard biopic approach, infused with familiar dramatic period vibes. This makes the film feel rather long and tiresome, even with some sparky screenwriting and a committed central performance by Nicholas Hoult.

Full Review | Original Score: 3/5 | May 19, 2020

For the film's UK release, nearly three years after its limited theatrical unveiling in the US, Spacey has unsurprisingly been scrubbed from its cover art. The same treatment should have been extended to the film itself.

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | May 19, 2020

For the most part, it serves as a workable, watchable entry point for the uninitiated. Those looking for more in-depth observations, especially about the creation of The Catcher in the Rye, might be better of reading books on the subject.

Full Review | May 13, 2020

What's telling is how phony the reverence toward Salinger seems.

Full Review | Mar 24, 2020

It's a poor proposal that only gets redeemed by the chemistry that arises between Hoult and Spacey. [Full Review in Spanish]

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Jul 20, 2019

Fairly standard but impressive biopic about JD Salinger.

Full Review | Original Score: B | Mar 13, 2019

A leaden simplistic biopic of the celebrated recluse author J. D. Salinger--a movie he would have most likely detested.

Full Review | Original Score: C+ | Feb 26, 2019

The environment is immersive and the story is engrossing, even though neither filmmaker Strong nor actor Hoult tries overly hard to make Jerry sympathetic.

Full Review | Original Score: A- | Aug 28, 2018

With too long of a running time, the potential biography only tells the same story of a misunderstood writer, that becomes boring and hard to watch.

Full Review | Aug 27, 2018

It has all the makings of a solid biopic, but lacks the execution and most essentially, the heart.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/5 | Aug 21, 2018

Danny Strong demonstrates a remarkable weakness of influence... [Full Review in Spanish]

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | May 18, 2018

Rebel in the Rye is so eager to be a transcript for [The] Catcher in the Rye that it constantly seeks to equate the author with the fictional teenager, even when the author was much older... [Full Review in Spanish]

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/5 | May 8, 2018

Any reader of Salinger will be disappointed. Any reader of Salinger would have liked to see it. [Full Review in Spanish]

Full Review | May 4, 2018

Danny Strong's film suggests dramatic Tetris, and it leeches J.D. Salinger and his process of any mystery.

Full Review | Original Score: 1.5/4 | Jan 14, 2018

Rebel in the Rye works when Nicholas Hoult and Kevin Spacey are ironing out the creative process together, but past that it's a bore

Full Review | Original Score: 2/5 | Dec 6, 2017

...Rebel in the Rye could have gone deeper into life of the literary reclus

Full Review | Nov 13, 2017

Yet another cliché-ridden story of the tortured male genius.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/5 | Nov 1, 2017

An unfortunate misfire.

Full Review | Oct 18, 2017