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Critics Consensus: Though Penelope has a charming cast and an appealing message, it ultimately suffers from faulty narrative and sloppy direction.
Critic Consensus: Though Penelope has a charming cast and an appealing message, it ultimately suffers from faulty narrative and sloppy direction.
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All Critics (128) | Top Critics (33) | Fresh (68) | Rotten (60) | DVD (5)
I think it's a sweet film.
A precocious fairy tale made for and starring people too old for whimsy
While uneven, this Ugly Duckling redux is hipper and funnier than a Disney movie, and the positive message to young girls can't be discounted.
The semi-satirical treatment of celebrity culture, as Penelope is treated first as a tabloid sensation then a media darling, is lame and dated.
Sweet as gingerbread, Penelope deserves to find an audience; those with a taste for happily-ever-afters should look for it, before it too-quickly disappears.
Director Palansky and screenwriter Leslie Caveny seem to have many of the right ingredients for creating something beguiling, but the film is, finally, surprisingly pedestrian. What a shame, with all these good performers.
This quirky, snarky contemporary fairy tale could have been a family blockbuster.
Penelope suggests that peace comes through character, not cosmetic surgery. In this, it's smarter than Twilight...
I can truthfully say that watching this abysmal fantasy-comedy is less rewarding than being slapped across the face with a large wet fish.
Watchable but patchy fantasy romance that doesn't quite work, despite strong performances from Ricci and McAvoy.
A modern-day fairytale, the film is tarted up like a hyperactive five-year-old's lurid fantasy of interior decor.
Visually stylish, what might have been a cute fantasy becomes tedious due to its banal script and a relentless overload of pig-jokes.
Sweet, fairy tale type movie. Resse Witherspoon is barely in this, which surprised me, but quite honestly Christina Ricci and James McAvoy steal the film anyhow. It has a great message to it and is a film all ages would enjoy. 4/5/15. Wow, sounds like I enjoyed this a lot more on the first viewing. A few years have gone by and I decided to watch it again. It's still an okay movie, but nothing great. Certainly not the 4 stars I originally rated. Reese Witherspoon is actually quite grating here, considering her small role. (Even though the character is nice). The whole thing is far fetched (obviously) and I don't know that I really felt anything for Penelope. This felt to me very much a family movie fairy tale. Like Enchanted. So I guess for a fan of that genre, I would recommend it. Not so much for myself though.
Super Reviewer
Adorable and 3/4. Funny and effective social satire about beauty, fame, and marriage. Christina Ricci is a lovely-locked if bobbleheaded vision, and James McAvoy is a shaggy-haired dream.
It seems a bit ridiculous that a pig nose could cause people to cringe in horror and jump out of windows (especially considering the amount of ugly people in this world), but this decent little fable-like comedy has a sweet moral message and makes the best of a simple idea.
Penelope (Christina Ricci) is cursed with a pig nose so her family are in pursuit of a suitor who will break the curse. James McAvoy is great in this movie. A bit of an unusual role for Reese Witherspoon but she's great too. It is certificate U but some scenes might be a bit scarey for young kids.
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