33
Metascore
10 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 50Slant MagazineSlant MagazineThe first strike against the movie is that the awkward and diminutive Sammi Hanratty is never even slightly convincing as an enviable teenage diva, and surely not as the most popular girl in school.
- 50The Hollywood ReporterMichael RechtshaffenThe Hollywood ReporterMichael RechtshaffenThe film, both in scope and tone, has a downsized vibe that would have made it a much better fit on an ABC Family than in a movie theater.
- 50Philadelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyPhiladelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyBy turns pleasant and preposterous, The Greening of Whitney Brown is a reverse Cinderella tale for tweens.
- 50VarietyRonnie ScheibVarietyRonnie ScheibThis simplistic story of bucolic redemption has few pretensions to depth, ambiguity or realism, relying on its name cast, sprightly lead and a helluva horse to attract family audiences.
- 40Time OutNick SchagerTime OutNick SchagerContent to be a typical piece of tween rural-versus-urban fluff from the old Hannah Montana: The Movie mold. Such lazy complacency is almost enough to make you see red.
- 40Village VoiceNick PinkertonVillage VoiceNick PinkertonThis is intended as one of those kid's comeuppance stories, in which a new maturity is won through contact with salt-of-the-earth types and honest labor but is done with an almost total lack of charm.
- 40Los Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinLos Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinAfter a grating start, the movie, directed by Peter Odiorne from a script by Gail Gilchriest ("My Dog Skip"), finds its way into warmer, more likable territory. That is, until it flies off the rails in a third act so devoid of logic it could have been concocted on the moon.
- Bright spots in The Greening of Whitney Brown are Bob the horse, a Gypsy Vanner who teaches Whitney about friendship and her rancher grandpa (Kris Kristofferson), who gets the Philly princess mucking out stalls.
- 30The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisThe New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisAs she learns the value of public schools and pickup trucks, her erstwhile friends in Philadelphia seem happy to be rid of her. By movie's end, you'll feel exactly the same.
- 20New York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierNew York Daily NewsJoe NeumaierThough this family film is slick and well-intentioned, it comes off as shallow as a prom committee meeting.