A Single Shot 2013

Manohla Dargis, New York Times: None of these characters, no matter how trashed-up for the down-market occasion, are believable. Read more

Rex Reed, New York Observer: What passes for a plot has been done a thousand times before-in much better films than A Single Shot. Read more

Leslie Felperin, Variety: A Single Shot aims to serve up gritty backwoods noir but misses its target by some distance. Read more

Scott MacDonald, AV Club: It's largely just an opportunity for the actors to try on Ozark-y mannerisms, swig moonshine, and hock loogies. And like most exercises in authenticity, it couldn't be more inauthentic if it tried. Read more

Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic: There at the center of the film is Rockwell, as good an actor as there is working today. Read more

Peter Keough, Boston Globe: So heavy on atmosphere that it's hard to breathe, this derivative drama sleepwalks through familiar story lines despite the efforts of a first-rate cast. Read more

Ben Sachs, Chicago Reader: This often feels familiar, but it's refreshing to see such time-worn material revived without ironic detachment. Read more

Cary Darling, Fort Worth Star-Telegram/DFW.com: Sam Rockwell is one of Hollywood's most underrated actors and he shows why that's the case again in A Single Shot, a rural, neo-noir thriller that slowly pulls the viewer under its veil of mystery. Read more

David Rooney, Hollywood Reporter: Its protagonist hits an unplanned target, but this increasingly risible mishmash misses at almost every turn. Read more

Sheri Linden, Los Angeles Times: The film charts no new territory but is terrifically cast and, like its source novel, long on atmosphere. Read more

Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: "A Single Shot" is a singular pleasure, and worth seeking out. Read more

Tomas Hachard, NPR: The back story disappoints less for its convoluted nature than for its failure to create a convincing set of motivations for its characters. Read more

Christy Lemire, RogerEbert.com: An odd mix of beautifully bleak atmosphere and hammily mannered performances, "A Single Shot" is simultaneously understated and overpowering. Read more

Liam Lacey, Globe and Mail: Both predictable and outlandish. Read more

Bruce Demara, Toronto Star: The pace feels too languid, draining some of the tension and suspense from the story. Read more

Stephen Garrett, Time Out: Despite its byzantine narrative, the film remains never less than absorbing, as the walls slowly close in on this good-hearted but ultimately flawed protagonist. Read more

Alan Scherstuhl, Village Voice: David M. Rosenthal's sturdy, nasty rural noir, based on Matthew F. Jones's novel, is so sharp and rusted through that, after taking it in, you'll likely need a tetanus shot. Read more