Tom Holland drug drama "Cherry" can't shake its cliches; For all the frenzied action of the final scenes though, there's an airless, overwrought sense of diminishing returns; and that's a comedown we've seen too many times before
there's much to chew on in "Cherry", and not all of it works. But a never-better performance from Tom Holland, and some bold directorial choices, make it a mostly compelling watch
the Russo brothers' scuzzy, interminable, and misjudged adaptation of Walker's life story; The real-life story of former opioid addict Nico Walker would make a good movie, but this one suffers from constant style over substance
the Russo Brothers' "Cherry" is an earnest star-vehicle that falls short of both its star and its story; "Cherry," it doesn't succeed as a war film, as a heist flick, or the star vehicle it so craves to be for Tom Holland
Russo brothers lavish an extraordinary amount of care on their film-making grammar here, lighting each frame exquisitely, carefully calibrating transition shots between scenes and making sure that every visual tweak contains its own logic
it's like three different movies in one: the teen years, the war experience, and then life as a drug addict. It's held together by the smart writing, by the overarching tone of tragic absurdity, and by Holland, who hits every bump on Cherry's way down
eventually "Cherry" breaks free enough of its influences to present a credible, at times harrowing, American addiction tragedy; Ciara Bravo, is at times the performer who has the strongest emotional hold on the viewer, and the most memorable find here
a powerful real-life story; Harsh times and heartbreak abound in the Russo brothers' gritty addiction epic "Cherry", but there's poetry in the language of the script and in certain moments of wonder and hope, of dark comedy, of love and redemption
a gritty, deeply intimate character study, eliciting strong performances from Holland and Bravo; Tom Holland's kinetic performance is impressive, but it's in the service of an uneven film that too self-consciously works at mirroring the form of a novel
a drama that wears its gritty poetry on its sleeve like a macho film-school merit badge, trivializing war, trauma and addiction with its veneration of style over psychological complexity
"Cherry" is a fairly standard drama that hits the expected beats, but is still elevated by Tom Holland's strong lead performance; "Cherry" is worth watching for those interested in either the story or Holland's exceptional performance
by Kevin Maher [The Times (UK) ]
by Mick LaSalle [San Francisco Chronicle ]
by Chris Barsanti [Slant Magazine ]
by Richard Roeper [Chicago Sun-Times ]
