Case 39 (2009) - Critic Reviews

70

Michelle Orange Movieline

There is enough lurid, ludicrous subtext in the material to keep fans of such things happy. As trash, this is top of the line.

50

Jeannette Catsoulis The New York Times

Radiating a distinctly retro vibe, this throwaway thriller from the German director Christian Alvart tosses a bone to Renée Zellweger, who chews it to a nub as Emily Jenkins, a harried social worker.

40

Empire

Manages to be both very silly and highly forgettable. Only for those who collect killer-children films.

38

Roger Moore Orlando Sentinel

It's only a movie, and not a remotely effective one. And for Zellweger, whose "Miss Potter" and "Appaloosa" were barely seen, with "Leatherheads" and "New in Town" further deflating her A-list clout, that's the real shame here.

30

Jordan Mintzer Variety

This ludicrous outing from helmer Christian Alvart ("Pandorum") and scribe Ray Wright ("The Crazies") takes its psycho-satanic babble much too seriously, and should elicit more laughs than frights.

30

Pam Grady Boxoffice Magazine

A mess of a horror movie that spent several years sitting on a shelf and should have remained there living up to its fullest potential as a dust magnet.

30

Robert Abele Los Angeles Times

One can't help experiencing the same dread about the exhausting flood of lackluster horror films that swamp our screens and, as Case 39 unfolds, realizing we're enduring one more.

30

Frank Scheck The Hollywood Reporter

Director Christian Alvart ("Pandorum") is unable to invest much stylization into the proceedings, and Ray Wright's by-the-book screenplay only serves as a reminder of the innumerable demon-child movies that have preceded this one.

16

Entertainment Weekly

An aggressively inept demon-seed chiller starring a bunch of grown-ups who should've known better.

12

New York Post

This movie is so self- combustingly bad it could never be good. But it's damn great fun to watch the thing go up in flames anyway.