Barefoot 2014

Sara Stewart, New York Post: He's a rebellious trust-funder who specializes in strip clubs, one-night stands and gambling debts. She's a possibly schizophrenic mental patient raised in near-captivity by an abusive mother. How could these two kids not fall in love? Read more

Joe Morgenstern, Wall Street Journal: Out of the mouths of babes comes dribble, as often as wisdom-or, in the case of this movie's infantile heroine, drivel. Read more

Dennis Harvey, Variety: A return to the cinema of adorable mental illness - something that, like the killer in a slasher movie, always seems to lurch back to life just when you think it's safely dead ... Read more

Barbara VanDenburgh, Arizona Republic: "Barefoot" plays its romance straight and glossy, trying to pass off serious mental illness as a cutesy character quirk that needs only the balm of true love to resolve itself. Read more

Tom Long, Detroit News: It's all thoroughly, intentionally lightweight, and the film's final 10 minutes is a rush of highly unlikely smiley face resolutions. Still, Wood somehow makes it work as well as it can. Read more

Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times: "Barefoot" has the distinction of featuring what has to be the only female character no actress of any pedigree could ever make believable. Read more

Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: Really, the emotionally ill have enough stigmas to contend with. They don't need the patronizing-yet-popular movie one of "They're just like us - only, you know, more innocent." Read more

Elizabeth Weitzman, New York Daily News: This ill-advised romance from director Andrew Fleming is the sort of indie lark that nearly drowns in its own whimsy. Wade in at your own risk. Read more

Stephen Holden, New York Times: The movie acts like screwball comedy, but there are no laughs as Daisy and Jay's connection lurches toward implausible romance. Read more

Michael Sragow, Orange County Register: A sorry throwback to sentimental 1960s movies -- the ones in which an offbeat woman repairs the soul of an emotionally clueless man. Read more

Michael Nordine, Village Voice: The gradual revelation that there's more to Daisy than meets the eye is no great surprise, but it does at least negate - too late! - some of the more troubling subtext. Read more