Time Magazine
Maybe the film loses a little steam as it rolls along, but it is still puffing and tooting as Clooney and Zellweger ride off into the sunset -- on a comically raffish period motorcycle, free as the wind.
Full review
Leatherheads
A romantic comedy set against the backdrop of America's pro-football league in 1925. Dodge Connolly (Clooney), a charming, brash football hero, is determined to guide his team from bar brawls to packed stadiums. But after the players lose their sponsor and the entire league faces certain collapse, Dodge convinces a college football star to join his ragtag ranks.
Welcome to the team Carter Rutherford (Krasinski), America's favorite son. A golden-boy war hero who single-handedly forced multiple German soldiers to surrender in WWI, Carter has dashing good looks and unparalleled speed on the field. This new champ is almost too good to be true, and Lexie Littleton (Zellweger) aims to prove that's the case.
Lexie is a spitfire newswoman who suspects there are holes in Carter's war story. But while she digs for dirt, both Dodge and Carter start to become serious off-field rivals for her fickle affections.
2008Rating: PG, Low Level Offensive Language114 minsUSA
Sport
- Director:
- George Clooney ('Good Night, and Good Luck')
- Writer:
- Duncan BrantleyRick Reilly
- Cast:
- George ClooneyJohn KrasinskiRenée ZellwegerStephen RootWayne Duvall
Leatherheads | Reviews
52%170 reviewsRotten Tomatoes® Score
All reviews on Rotten Tomatoes
The New York Times
What is harder to comprehend is how Mr. Clooney turned out such a sloppy, haphazard and tonally incoherent piece of work. Leatherheads lurches hectically between Coen brothers-style pastiche and John Saylesian didacticism, while Mr. Clooney works his brow and his jaw and waits in vain for his charm to kick in and save the day.
Full review
The Guardian
Clooney is smug and uninteresting as the cynical pro player, and, as the smart reporter, Renée Zellweger's facial muscles are locked in that weird lemon-sucking smirk-pout-grimace.
Full review
Los Angeles Times
This rather melancholy undertone is perhaps the most enjoyable thing about Leatherheads, which is substantially subtler than it makes itself out to be. Dodge and Lexie get the funny lines, but they also have to suffer the fate of smart people in a world ruled by commercial interests -- they can't win, but Clooney and Zellweger radiate intelligence and seem to take pleasure in each other's mental agility. Even when the lines are less than spectacular, the spark between the two actors is knowing and playful.
Full review
Empire Magazine
On paper it looks like a gem – roaring 20s setting, verbal fireworks and a silly sport in its rude infancy. In practice, it's way off the pace, far too slow for its screwball pretensions and the kind of film that confuses pastiche with period detail.
Full review
Christchurch Press
Leatherheads doesn't quite cut the mustard, but as long as you can go along with the self-aware cuteness and immersion in antique Americana, it's a fairly enjoyable romp.
Full review
BBC
It might not have the laughs or one-liners to live up to its screwball hype or indeed Clooney's past directorial efforts, but Leatherheads is smart and charming enough for George fans.
Full reviewLeatherheads | Release Details
Leatherheads is available to stream in New Zealand now on Google Play and Apple TV.