59
Metascore
20 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100The Hollywood ReporterDuane ByrgeThe Hollywood ReporterDuane ByrgeIn all fairness, this swill's swells are in the action: car chases, foot chases, wipeouts, shootouts, brawls and falls -- and they're terrific. Director Kathryn Bigelow pumps up the action to, indeed, full adrenal dimension. [12 July 1991]
- 88Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertThe plot of Point Blank, summarized, invites parody (rookie agent goes undercover as surfer to catch bank robbers). The result is surprisingly effective.
- 88Chicago TribuneDave KehrChicago TribuneDave KehrAt her best—and even in a hand-me-down project like Point Break—Bigelow is a uniquely talented, uniquely powerful filmmaker. Where the male action directors are still playing with toys-with dolls and models and matte shots-Bigelow has tapped into something primal and strong. She is a sensualist of genius in this most sensual of mediums.
- 70The New York TimesJanet MaslinThe New York TimesJanet MaslinPoint Break, though it's anything but watertight where plotting is concerned, again reveals Ms. Bigelow's real talents as a director of fast-paced, high-adrenaline action. Whenever the flakiness of Point Break threatens to become lulling, Ms. Bigelow wakes up her audience with a formidable jolt.
- 63Slant MagazineSlant MagazineIn terms of Hollywood history, Bigelow's film is the perfect document of its time.
- 58Entertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanEntertainment WeeklyOwen GleibermanDirector Kathryn Bigelow is one of the new-style action wizards who’ve never quite mastered the nuts and bolts of telling a story.
- 50Baltimore SunBaltimore SunPoint Break has its areas of excitement, but on too many occasions the movie just lies there -- even when it does, however, the film still manages to look and sound good.
- 50Washington PostHal HinsonWashington PostHal HinsonA lot of what Bigelow puts up on the screen bypasses the brain altogether, plugging directly into our viscera, our gut. The surfing scenes in particular are majestically powerful, even awe-inspiring. Bigelow's picture is a feast for the eyes, but we watch movies with more than our eyes. She seduces us, then asks us to be bimbos.
- 50Austin ChronicleSteve DavisAustin ChronicleSteve DavisBigelow stages the film's action sequences with a brutal efficiency (they almost redeem the movie), but she can't keep the increasingly silly script in check.