43
Metascore
13 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 70Los Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinLos Angeles TimesGary GoldsteinIt's simple stuff, but it works.
- 50VarietyJoe LeydonVarietyJoe LeydonPassably pleasant but thoroughly predictable.
- 50New York PostSara StewartNew York PostSara StewartDirector Ben Hickernell soft-pedals the material into a blandly feel-good dramedy. As Abigail's spirited young trainees, Alexandra Metz and Meredith Apfelbaum give Backwards their all, but can't row their way clear of its clichés.
- 50Philadelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyPhiladelphia InquirerCarrie RickeyBackwards - its title referring to the wisdom that life is lived forward but understood backward - has no forward propulsion.
- 40Time OutNick SchagerTime OutNick SchagerThe lesson here, apparently, is that driven women just need to lighten up and stop being selfish - a message that really does feel backward.
- 40Village VoiceVillage VoiceSubplots are introduced only to be resolved within minutes, characters jettisoned at a moment's notice. Those who can't do, teach; those who settle apparently end up pretty happy.
- 40The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisThe New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisPairing a dull romance with an even duller sport (at least as represented here), this cliché-ridden vanity project is more suited to the ABC Family channel than to the inside of a movie theater.
- 40New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanNew York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanAs her boss and boyfriend, an impressively good-natured James Van Der Beek adds a professional sheen to what otherwise feels like a vanity affair.
- 25Slant MagazineSlant MagazineStreamlines its busy set of plots and subplots into a 90-minute sprint, throughout which characters often confront and overcome their obstacles within the same scene.