Hello I Must Be Going 2012

Glenn Kenny, MSN Movies: ... not just one of the finest indie releases of the year, but one of the sharpest and most moving and engaging movies of the year, period. Read more

A.O. Scott, New York Times: [It's] better than the story it has to tell, and that is thanks to the bravery and sensitivity of Ms. Lynskey's performance and the sweet, intense love affair that is the film's main concern. Read more

Claudia Puig, USA Today: A funny, well-written, involving and emotionally honest tale. Read more

Christy Lemire, Associated Press: Both funnier and deeper than you might expect at the outset. Read more

Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times: Lynskey lets us see, from deep within Amy's fog, an instinctual desire to please, and a sense of innocent wonderment at how she could possibly have gotten into such a mess. Read more

Nathan Rabin, AV Club: For all its faults, Hello I Must Be Going marks a huge step up from actor-director Todd Louiso's previous efforts... Read more

Ty Burr, Boston Globe: The movie's sharp-tongued and softhearted, a Sundance kind of film that mostly sidesteps generic Sundanceyness. Read more

Ben Sachs, Chicago Reader: Sarah Koskoff's screenplay is flagrantly duplicitous, introducing the heroine as a self-pitying sloth, then trying to pass her off as likable by making nearly all the other characters drips, snobs, or unfeeling scolds. Read more

Peter Rainer, Christian Science Monitor: Abbott has a compelling unpredictability, though, and in a couple of his scenes with Lynskey, you can spot the stirrings of a more complex film than the one we finally ended up with. Read more

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: Every scene - including mopey family meals, secret assignations, and confessions under the stars - breathes with a freshness that carries this tiny romance safely beyond the realm of indie cuteness, into the world of a character worth caring about. Read more

Amanda Mae Meyncke, Film.com: While there are laughs and plenty of them sprinkled throughout, Hello I Must Be Going is predictably sweet and ends up exactly where you think it might, safe and sound. Read more

Todd McCarthy, Hollywood Reporter: A credibly drawn central character is trapped inside a half-cooked dramatic stew in Hello I Must Be Going. Read more

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: Lynskey inhabits the role so completely, brings such exquisite naturalness to her performance, that she becomes someone we root for unreservedly. Read more

Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger: This isn't a new topic for independent films - ten years ago, Jake Gyllenhaal was the busy boy-toy in both "Lovely & Amazing" and "The Good Girl" - but this film handles it with fresh eyes, and a gentle approach. Read more

Farran Smith Nehme, New York Post: Overall, the comedy is a lovely showcase for Lynskey and the rest of the cast. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Much credit goes here to Christopher Abbott, whose persuasive performance bridges the gap. He's like a living embodiment of the cliche, "I love you enough for the both of us." Read more

Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com: If it's too subtle (and too similar to several other low-key indie romcoms) to make a big splash, it's got lovely performances and really builds strength as it goes along. Read more

G. Allen Johnson, San Francisco Chronicle: Sarah Koskoff's play-it-safe script and Louiso's heavy-handed direction combine to kill the potential of "Hello I Must Be Going." Read more

Dana Stevens, Slate: I hope Hello, I Must Be Going will introduce many new viewers to Lynskey's charms, and that at least of a few of them will be casting directors. Read more

Calvin Wilson, St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "Hello I Must Be Going" is at once an intriguing character study and a refreshingly offbeat romance. Read more

Alonso Duralde, TheWrap: But while this is Lynskey's show, the real gut-punch comes from Danner as the uptight and dissatisfied Ruth, who loves her daughter but also wants her to get her life together (and, ideally, the hell out of the house). Read more

Keith Uhlich, Time Out: Koskoff's script is all stock epiphanies about getting your life in order and following your dreams. Read more

Peter Debruge, Variety: Even the look seems to be at odds with the material. Read more

Andrew Schenker, Village Voice: Todd Louiso's Hello I Must Be Going affirms Lynskey as a lead mostly by letting us marvel at the depth she brings ... Read more

Michael O'Sullivan, Washington Post: Succeeds almost entirely on the strength of Melanie Lynskey's heartfelt and humorous performance in the lead role. Read more