74
Metascore
8 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90Los Angeles TimesKatie WalshLos Angeles TimesKatie WalshIt's a very, very funny film but also sweetly sad and poignant, echoing the mix of humor and pathos that marks a New Yorker cartoon exactly what it is.
- 88RogerEbert.comMatt FagerholmRogerEbert.comMatt FagerholmCatnip for writers and humorists of all stripes, Wolchok’s film provides delightful breakdowns of various cartoons, examining the comedic rhythm of their design and detail.
- 80The New York TimesGlenn KennyThe New York TimesGlenn KennyIf you’ve ever been curious as to how a cartoonist gets into The New Yorker and what happens then, Very Semi-Serious offers very satisfactory info.
- 80The GuardianJordan HoffmanThe GuardianJordan HoffmanIt’s a minor work that knows its place in the margins, but is thought-provoking and surreptitiously insightful – and very funny.
- 80The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeThe Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeBuzzing attentively but not exclusively around cartoon editor Bob Mankoff, director Leah Wolchok strikes a pleasing balance between office minutiae and comic greatest hits; she gets enough face time with individual artists to please comedy nerds while keeping things wholly accessible to casual fans.
- 75San Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoSan Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoWith more than a hint of the magazine’s trademark insouciance, the film gives us a close look at how the selection process works and introduces us a to a handful of younger artists, as well as such stalwarts as George Booth and Roz Chast.
- 70VarietyScott FoundasVarietyScott FoundasA delightful if never particularly deep survey of an American comic institution.
- 50Slant MagazineChristopher GraySlant MagazineChristopher GrayIt doesn't seem to aspire to much more than proving that there are nice, talented people behind the New Yorker's walls.