55
Metascore
12 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 88Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertThis is a family drama, all right - but not one of those neat docudramas in which every character comes attached to a fashionable problem, and all the problems are solved in the same happy ending. The family in Light of Day is more like your average, everyday, unhappy family in which the biggest problem is that some of the members quite simply hate each other.
- 80Time OutTime OutThe cast make the most of an intelligent script, with Rowlands and (especially) Jett providing most of the emotional punch. They create a powerful feeling of real lives being lived and lost.
- 60The New York TimesJanet MaslinThe New York TimesJanet MaslinAs in Blue Collar and Hardcore, Mr. Schrader shows himself capable of launching the action in a powerhouse style. Once again, that forcefulness deteriorates as the film progresses.
- 60Los Angeles TimesMichael WilmingtonLos Angeles TimesMichael WilmingtonLight of Day is a sympathetic, intelligent movie, with one great performance, but it suffers from the malaise rock 'n' roll is supposed to cure: inhibitions, a lack of spontaneity. [06 Feb 1987, p.4]
- 50Despite the over-the-edge quality of her character, Rowlands makes even the most ludicrous lines seem feasible. Fox is basically miscast as the good-natured brother who idolizes his sister and tries to cover for her. Jett looks the part and even manages to hit the mark from time to time, but for every hit there’s a miss.
- 50Washington PostPaul AttanasioWashington PostPaul AttanasioLight of Day is crippled by its confused intentions, a crazy quilt of the good, the bad and the ugly.
- 50Washington PostRita KempleyWashington PostRita KempleyFor the most part, American movies concern the middle class, console the poor and celebrate the rich, and Schrader tried to pay blue-collar culture its due. He may have worked an honest day, but he didn't come up with an honest drama.
- 50Miami HeraldHal BoedekerMiami HeraldHal BoedekerA combination rock-and-roll tearjerker and domestic drama. It is gloomy, boring and sentimental. [06 Feb 1987, p.C5]
- 50NewsweekDavid AnsenNewsweekDavid AnsenLight of Day has the virtues of sincerity, but that may also be what keeps it so relentlessly mundane. [09 Feb 1987, p.75]
- 40TV Guide MagazineTV Guide MagazineDespite a few good moments here and there and a stunning performance by Gena Rowlands, Light of Day is an anemic drama with little to say.