Running With Scissors

30% of critics liked it

54% of users liked it

Annette Bening, Brian Cox
In theaters Oct 20, 2006
R, 2 hr. 2 min.

Movie Info

Cast: Annette Bening, Brian Cox, Joseph Fiennes, Evan Rachel Wood, Alec Baldwin, Jill Clayburgh, Joseph Cross, Gwyneth Paltrow, Gabrielle Union, Kristin Chenoweth
Director: Ryan Murphy
Rated: R
Running Time: 2 hr. 2 min.
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Theater Release: Oct 20, 2006
DVD Release: Jul 29, 2003
Synopsis: Screen newcomer Joseph Cross portrays Augusten Burroughs in director Ryan Murphy's film adaptation of author Burroughs' best-selling personal memoir of the same name. A child of the 1970s whose alcoholic father, Norman (Alec Baldwin), and delusional, unpublished poet mother, Deirdre (Annette Bening), serve as the dictionary definition of the word "dysfunctional," Augusten is sent by his mother to live with her eccentric psychiatrist, Dr. Finch (Brian Cox), when his disagreeable parents

Critic Reviews

  • Richard Roeper, Ebert & Roeper
    In the real world, mental illness is a serious problem. In this film, it gives everyone a license to run around like characters in a Lewis Carroll story -- all of it set to predictable pop hits from the 1970s. More...
  • James Berardinelli, ReelViews
    As dysfunctional family movies go, this is one skip. It doesn't just run with the scissors, it falls on them. More...
  • Moira MacDonald, Seattle Times
    Running with Scissors looks great, and works fine when Bening is on screen; otherwise, it's off-balance, teetering where it should hold steady. More...
  • Steven Rea, Philadelphia Inquirer
    If the book was deadpan, the movie is more -- or less -- dead. More...
  • Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel
    This is an Igby Goes Down without the laughs, a morbid miscalculation of The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou size. More...
  • Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune
    The film trips over its willy-nilly story line and falls on its own blade. More...
  • Connie Ogle, Miami Herald
    Anyone who has watched 10 minutes of Nip/Tuck knows [director] Murphy is adept at cramming all sorts of weirdness into a couple of hours, but in Running With Scissors he turns out to be inexplicably squeamish. More...
  • Bruce Westbrook, Houston Chronicle
    It's one of the most clear-headed -- and twistedly entertaining -- views of drug dependency and insanity I've ever seen. More...
  • Tom Long, Detroit News
    Just as the title implies, Running with Scissors falls down and impales itself at nearly every turn. It's one big uh-oh and ouch of a movie. More...
  • Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press
    Running with Scissors feels like nothing more than one of the many current TV series that appeal to viewers looking for edgy entertainment. More...