Don't Come Knocking 2005

Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune: There's something a little absurd about this story, but for me, it's endearingly goofy. Read more

Misha Berson, Seattle Times: For those in tune with Shepard's oeuvre; Wenders' sly, muted tone; and the exquisite cinematography of Franz Lustig, Don't Come Knocking can be quirkily resonant. Read more

Ruthe Stein, San Francisco Chronicle: A pretentious drama about a formerly famous movie star undergoing an identity crisis. Read more

Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper: There are so many good performances here. Read more

Steve Murray, Atlanta Journal-Constitution: The kind of movie you stretch out in, wander around, and -- like the characters onscreen -- just let happen to you. Read more

Scott Tobias, AV Club: It's a beautiful mess, but it's a mess all the same. Read more

Bill Muller, Arizona Republic: The story is as meandering as it is self-indulgent. Read more

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: [A] big-hearted failure of a film. Read more

Kevin Crust, Los Angeles Times: Despite a fine cast, the film feels as lost as Howard, unsure of its direction or tone. Read more

Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle: Shards of honesty pierce the action, true little moments that wound or heal a weak man in a flawed story. Read more

Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor: Lustig's cinematography has a Walker Evans-like power. Read more

Michael Booth, Denver Post: A moving film that hangs with you like a favorite vacation to red-rock country. Read more

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly: What gives it a vital, touching dimension is that Shepard, as actor and writer, depicts Howard's burnout from a hard-bitten inside knowledge of celebrity's privileges and traps. Read more

Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press: Don't Come Knocking isn't noticeably relevant or insightful, even if you're able to suspend disbelief long enough to buy the idea of a western movie star in the 21st Century. Read more

Philip Wuntch, Dallas Morning News: Burdened with uneven acting and portentous dialogue, the film has one important saving grace. Franz Lustig's cinematography exquisitely captures the grandeur and loneliness of the American West. Read more

Ella Taylor, L.A. Weekly: A weirdly atonal film that lurches between heavy-breathing comedy and dramatic overkill. Read more

Rene Rodriguez, Miami Herald: The longer Don't Come Knocking goes on, the less interesting it becomes, its considerable promise sacrificed by a director's inability to keep his self-indulgences in check. Read more

Gene Seymour, Newsday: Much as you want to walk away from the messes it makes, Don't Come Knocking is like a performing panhandler on the subway whose shtick is just funny enough to grab your attention -- along with a little loose change. Read more

Jack Mathews, New York Daily News: More a cry of regret than a coherent story. Read more

Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel: The charm here is in watching Shepard and Lange, and Shepard and Saint play off one another, and the leisurely pace of the 'discoveries' that aren't really secrets in the first place. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Don't Come Knocking finally doesn't work for me, because instead of embodying its themes it seems to be regarding them from outside, with awe, as if it is the high school production of itself. Read more

Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune: It walks a fine line between sentimentality and satire, but rarely stumbles, thanks to a cast that is captivating to hear and watch. Read more

St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Read more

Kate Taylor, Globe and Mail: Suffers badly from an emotional aimlessness. Read more

Peter Howell, Toronto Star: Spence has much in common with Shepard and Wenders. They seem equally bewildered about what to do, other than spending nearly two hours demonstrating that Spence is a self-pitying fool. Read more

Geoff Andrew, Time Out: By the time we get to the point where the camera is endlessly circling Shepard sitting on a sofa in the middle of the street, it feels as if he and his director were making things up as they went along. Read more

Todd McCarthy, Variety: Strikes some resonant chords but also hits notes that simply don't ring true and are borderline risible at times. Read more

Michael Atkinson, Village Voice: Don't Come Knocking would cure even Tom Waits of barroom whimsy for life. Read more

Stephen Hunter, Washington Post: It degenerates into one of those scream-o-ramas, an emotional hellzapoppin', where everybody tries to make everybody else cry. Read more