Margaret | Rotten Tomatoes

Margaret

R

Released Sep 30, 2011

2 hr. 29 min.

Drama

List

75%

102 Reviews

Tomatometer

49%

5,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

New York high-school student Lisa Cohen (Anna Paquin) inadvertently causes an accident in which a bus driver (Mark Ruffalo) runs over a pedestrian (Allison Janney). Guilt-stricken over her role in the woman's death, Lisa's mood swings from normal to furious, with her angry outbursts mostly directed at her mother (J. Smith-Cameron). Lisa reaches out to the dead woman's best friend (Jeannie Berlin) and the bus driver, but her failed efforts to make amends only lead to more hostility.

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Critics Consensus

A surfeit of ideas contributes to Margaret's excessive run time, but Anna Paquin does a admirable job of guiding viewers through emotional hell.

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Ravenswood R

About half way through the extended version, Anna Paquin takes public transportation from Manhattan to Brooklyn to arrive unannounced at Mark Ruffalo's home where she asks to use the bathroom. We are treated to a shot of her on the toilet where she takes a shit, the cute little plop of which we clearly hear on the soundtrack. A very moving scene. A cinematic triumph. The film *should* have ended there, but it goes on for another 90+ minutes in which Ms. Paquin gets increasingly hysterical for reasons which are not entirely clear, but at least we know her mental instability is not caused by constipation.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

10/09/23

Full Review

John J

A masterpiece. One of the best movies I've ever seen. The low ratings are testimony to the moral complexity of the movie that most people cannot manage.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/05/23

Full Review

Jon P

Don't get sucked in by some positive aspects of the early scenes. The ratio of misses to hits keeps getting worse and none of it is worth your time as you start to realize the movie is a mess and the hoped for big themes that tie everything together never come.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

Full Review

Steve D

Overly long and thinly plotted.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/11/23

Full Review

beth z

Hands-down my favorite performance by Anna Paquin. I am a New Yorker and the way that the city and the characters are portrayed is spot-on. Visually stunning and sometimes jarring, this film really makes you feel. A bit long, but much like an opera it takes you on an emotionally arduous yet satisfying journey and rewards you with a gratifying sense of closure.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

An incredible lineup cast: Matt Damon, Matthew Broderick, Mark Ruffalo, Jean Reno, Allison Janney, Olivia Thirlby, Krysten Ritter, and Michael Ealy Anna Paquin is Lisa, a woman unexpectedly torn after an immense tragedy directed by Kenneth Lonergan Lisa is a high school student, she tries to take the city bus but the driver gets distracted and accidentally hits an innocent bystander The woman dies and Lisa is forever changed by the trauma She tries to repair the lives affected by what happened and starts to think she didn't tell the authorities the whole story Lisa's mood swings start to overrun her daily life and despite her best efforts to make amends it only leads to more hostility This movie is a harrowing journey of a woman torn by her guilt and struggling to get past her shock It's truly some of the best acting from Paquin's career She's a woman so conflicted with guilt, bad psychological scarring, and emotional wounds It's all about one person learning to confront a big mistake Definitely let's the viewer force and wrestle with the meaning of justice Accidents happen but how we deal with them afterwards is a battle of its own Sure the movie is a bit sloppy in a few areas but the drama is engrossing and Paquin carries the whole thing

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/22/23

Full Review

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Kenneth Lonergan

Director

Anna Paquin

Lisa Cohen

J. Smith-Cameron

Joan

Jean Reno

Ramon

Jeannie Berlin

Emily

Allison Janney

Monica

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Critics Consensus: 50/50 is Certified Fresh

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Guy Lodge

Empire Magazine

Knotty, ambitious and trading in messy human truths, it's the work of a master dramatist. Here's hoping Lonergan's next one reaches us a little faster.

Rated: 4/5

Sep 29, 2014

Full Review

Nicholas Barber

Independent (UK)

Margaret is less about plot mechanics than about the virtuosity of the dialogue, the complexity of the characters, and the detail and depth of their untidy world.

Rated: 4/5

Sep 29, 2014

Full Review

J. R. Jones

Chicago Reader

Even in its truncated state, this is pretty gripping stuff.

Sep 26, 2014

Full Review

CJ Sheu

Review Film Review

[This] is probably the closest we’ll ever get to a William Gaddis adaptation, [...] [in which people] talk to each other and to Lisa [an astounding Anna Paquin], and Lisa talks to them, but nobody’s listening.

Jul 7, 2022

Full Review

Jason Adams

My New Plaid Pants

This is a movie so dense and somewhat sloppy, somewhat wonderfully so, that I don't know I can do it any justice

Jul 2, 2021

Full Review

Ed Travis

Hollywood Jesus

I highly recommend investing in the extended cut of this important drama. You'll be forced to wrestle with the meaning of justice...

Mar 31, 2020

Full Review

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Synopsis

New York high-school student Lisa Cohen (Anna Paquin) inadvertently causes an accident in which a bus driver (Mark Ruffalo) runs over a pedestrian (Allison Janney). Guilt-stricken over her role in the woman's death, Lisa's mood swings from normal to furious, with her angry outbursts mostly directed at her mother (J. Smith-Cameron). Lisa reaches out to the dead woman's best friend (Jeannie Berlin) and the bus driver, but her failed efforts to make amends only lead to more hostility.

Director: Kenneth Lonergan
Executive Producer: Anthony Minghella
Screenwriter: Kenneth Lonergan
Distributor: Fox Searchlight
Production Co: Camelot Pictures, Fox Searchlight, Scott Rudin Productions, Mirage Enterprises
Rating: R (Sexuality|Disturbing Images|Some Drug Use|Strong Language)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 30, 2011, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 1, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $46.5K
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

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