54
Metascore
9 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75RogerEbert.comMatt FagerholmRogerEbert.comMatt FagerholmWhat resonates most potently are the scenes of the 1972 trial.
- 70Village VoiceCraig D. LindseyVillage VoiceCraig D. LindseyCanadian documentarian Jamie Kastner (The Secret Disco Revolution) has crafted an entertainingly kitschy version of an Errol Morris film.
- 70Los Angeles TimesKatie WalshLos Angeles TimesKatie WalshStylistic choices could have undermined the film, but the story and revelations are so shocking and powerfully absorbing that The Skyjacker’s Tale rises above.
- 60The New York TimesBen KenigsbergThe New York TimesBen KenigsbergThe Skyjacker’s Tale could stand to lose its gimmicky re-enactments. Why supplement a story this crazy?
- 50Movie NationRoger MooreMovie NationRoger MooreThe movie creates a lovely arc for how we think of Ali, from monster to, “Well, maybe not.” But you’re allowed to think the filmmaker is naive, tilting his story toward those on Ali’s side, buttressing a case for his humanity and justifiable skyjacking.
- Even as he cuts confusingly between talking heads and time periods, Kastner elides key details that might have given viewers a more complex portrait of both the setting and his anti-hero’s role in the drama.
- 50The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeThe Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeThe question of decades-old torture is an important one, of course, but hardly makes this a must-see doc when there are so many present-tense stories of police misconduct to investigate.
- 50VarietyScott TobiasVarietyScott TobiasA Skyjacker’s Tale is all in the telling, and Jamie Kastner’s haphazard documentary misses the opportunity to get it right, despite having access to Ali and an impressive assembly of major players from his past.
- 45Paste MagazineDaniel SchindelPaste MagazineDaniel SchindelDespite the intriguing subject matter, this documentary can’t stay in the air.