Reign Over Me

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Reign Over Me

R

2007

2h 4m

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

65%

Tomatometer

149 Reviews

81%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

Charlie Fineman (Adam Sandler), who lost his family in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, still grieves over their deaths. He runs into his former college roommate, Alan Johnson (Don Cheadle), and the two rekindle their friendship. Alan himself is feeling the strain of family and professional responsibilities, and his renewed bond with Charlie gives both men the strength to carry on during a turning point in their lives.

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Critics Consensus

Reign Over Me is a charming, affecting tale of friendship and loss, with solid performances from Adam Sandler as a broken, grief-stricken man and Don Cheadle as his old friend and savior.

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Sukhdev Sandhu

Daily Telegraph (UK)

Apr 20, 2007

This film manages to be not just bearable, but on occasion actually quite affecting.

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Andrew Pulver

Guardian

Apr 20, 2007

2/5

Without Sandler, Reign Over Me would be a gloopy, post-9/11 love-in, making cavalier use of a fine but helpless cast.

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Ian Johns

The Times (UK)

Apr 20, 2007

2/5

It's as if 9/11 was simply coopted to bring an extra weight to a script that couldn't be trusted to deliver on its own.

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David Nusair

Reel Film Reviews

Oct 9, 2026

2.5/4

...potentially searing subject matter that’s employed to watchable yet distressingly lackluster effect by Binder...

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Micheal Compton

Bowling Green Daily News

Nov 21, 2019

Binder does an excellent job of creating interesting characters with compelling stories and sprinkles in some humorous moments. The characters are given life by a talented cast.

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Ellie Lucas

The Dispatch (Lexington, NC)

Jun 6, 2019

3.5/4

Binder's screenplay is a thing of gentle beauty, and indeed so is the film as a whole.

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Robert P

@Superbad Oct 13, 2026

Reign Over Me is a *4* star Movie!

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Jacob B

@JB3.0 Sep 14, 2026

A moving drama about grief and friendship, Reign Over Me isn't perfect but Adam Sandler's powerful performance, some really tearjerking drama scenes especially near the end, a few decent attempts at levity and really good execution of sensitive subject matter without any easy answers make this an overlooked gem in his filmography. It must be doing something right if anyone actually familiar with Shadow of the Colossus knows that it serves a thematic purpose rather than just being gratuitous product placement...though the fact that it's a PlayStation exclusive certainly must've been satisfactory to the egos of the higher-ups at Sony.

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Uncle R

@MasterExploder Sep 4, 2026

Powerful film, very enjoyable and keeps you engaged

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Marco L

@decatur555 Aug 6, 2026

Reign Over Me is a beautiful and deeply sad film about grief, friendship and the difficulty of continuing after losing everything. Adam Sandler gives one of the finest performances of his career as Charlie, a man who lost his wife and daughters on September 11 and has built an isolated life designed to keep every memory away. Don Cheadle is equally strong as Alan, an old friend whose apparently stable life is not as satisfying as it seems. Their renewed friendship is messy, imperfect and moving, without offering Charlie an easy or unrealistic recovery. The shifts between comedy and drama do not always work, but the emotional core remains powerful. A warm, painful film that may genuinely stay with you long after it ends.

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Stephen C

@bob25009 Jul 13, 2026

The worldwide gross is $22,242,388.00 a little more than the production budget of $20,000,000.00. Difference of $2,242,388.00.

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Emma T

@RT92033662 Jun 12, 2026

This movie had potential, but Adam Sandler wasn’t right for this role. His performance was really hard to watch at times.

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Mike Binder

Director

Adam Sandler

Charlie Fineman

Don Cheadle

Alan Johnson

Jada Pinkett Smith

Janeane Johnson

Liv Tyler

Angela Oakhurst

Saffron Burrows

Donna Remar

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Synopsis

Charlie Fineman (Adam Sandler), who lost his family in the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, still grieves over their deaths. He runs into his former college roommate, Alan Johnson (Don Cheadle), and the two rekindle their friendship. Alan himself is feeling the strain of family and professional responsibilities, and his renewed bond with Charlie gives both men the strength to carry on during a turning point in their lives.

Director: Mike Binder
Producer: Michael Rotenberg
Screenwriter: Mike Binder
Distributor: Sony Pictures Entertainment
Production Co: 3 Arts Entertainment, Sunlight Productions
Rating: R (Some Sexual References|Language)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 23, 2007, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Apr 16, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $19.7M
Runtime: 2h 4m
Sound Mix: Dolby SRD, DTS, SDDS
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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