79
Metascore
24 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 91The Film StageChristopher SchobertThe Film StageChristopher SchobertShiva Baby is a blast of energy and from its first moment to its last Seligman finds the right balance. There is genuine suspense, if not horror; the score, by Ariel Marx, could just as easily fit a summer camp slasher flick. But the greatest feeling for the audience––after discomfort––is excitement.
- 83The A.V. ClubKatie RifeThe A.V. ClubKatie RifeThe style of humor in Shiva Baby can best be described as “sex-positive cringe,” in which the secondhand embarrassment comes less from the sexual situations themselves than our heroine’s collision with polite, conservative society.
- 83Original-CinLinda BarnardOriginal-CinLinda BarnardSeligman’s tight script landed her on Variety’s list of 10 Screenwriters to Watch for 2020. She uses classic Jewish humour and archetypal characters here that echo 1960s comedy albums and TV sitcoms but freshens it with Generation Z angst and a cascade of emotional pileups.
- 80VarietyTomris LafflyVarietyTomris LafflyHaving grown up in a tight-knit Jewish community herself, Seligman tightly orchestrates it all with loving cultural specificity and nuance, working her satirical muscles to a thrilling extent.
- 80The Hollywood ReporterJon FroschThe Hollywood ReporterJon FroschAnchoring it all is Sennott, deploying a stealthy, low-key timing that's perfectly suited to a character still struggling to figure out, and get comfortable with, who she is. The actress makes you lean in, her face a frequently blank canvas animated by sporadic squiggles of wit, neediness, resentment and longing that recede almost as soon as they appear.
- 75SlashfilmJason GorberSlashfilmJason GorberSullen, sarcastic, silly and seductive at various times, the film manages to walk a high-wire act of tone, making the act of mourning the least miserable part of the family gathering.
- 75The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Kate TaylorThe Globe and Mail (Toronto)Kate TaylorThe concept and the laughs hold strong amid all the craziness because Seligman has such affectionate sympathy for her mendacious protagonist.
- 75Slant MagazineDavid RobbSlant MagazineDavid RobbEmma Seligman’s film effectively builds tension from what is a relatively familiar, low-key scenario.
- 67Austin ChronicleRichard WhittakerAustin ChronicleRichard WhittakerSeligman's script will strike a sharp chord in anyone that has run into overly-complicated situations at a family gathering (i.e. just about everyone). It feels like a hurdy-gurdy that is just enough put of tune to leave you uneasy, a sensation of queasiness further unbalanced by Ariel Marx's discordant, scratchy, string-and-timpani soundtrack