Glenrothan, the British comedy-drama starring Brian Cox and Alan Cumming, has been panned ahead of its theatrical release later this week. Set to hit the big screen on Friday (17 April), the film currently has an unwanted 0% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
The film sees Cox portray Sandy, a resident of the Scottish Highlands who takes care of his family’s whiskey distillery. He gets a shock, however, when his estranged brother, Donal (Cumming), returns home after nearly four decades away.
Featuring Shirley Henderson and Alexandra Shipp in supporting roles, the family comedy-drama is Cox’s directorial debut, but it doesn’t look to have been a smooth acting-to-directing transition if the first reviews are anything to go by.
Lionsgate
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On Rotten Tomatoes, Glenrothan currently has a rare 0% approval rating, with all 10 reviews being designated as ‘Rotten’. Of course, this could change in the coming days when the film is theatrically released, but it’s not a promising start.
Glenrothan, however, still has some way to go before being deemed the worst-reviewed film on the site. Ballistic: Ecks vs Sever currently holds that unwanted record, with the 0% score being unmoved after 117 ‘Rotten’ reviews.
You can read a selection of reviews for Glenrothan below:
“It’s somewhat jarring that Brian Cox, an actor who is seemingly incapable of a false note, has directed a film that consists of one false note after another… Take away the classy cast, and Glenrothan would be a Hallmark Channel Movie — and not an especially good one.”
“It’s unfortunate that the film itself is more like a bottom-shelf blend: easily drinkable, highly forgettable and bland. Worse still, it won’t get you even mildly buzzed.”
“Each scene feels overwritten to within an inch of its life and each development in the story so contrived that it lands with an agonizingly dull thud.”
“What could have been a by-the-numbers inspirational family movie is spoiled by the lack of narrative emotion and cinematic storytelling.”
Graeme Hunter Pictures//Lionsgate
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“There’s a clunkiness that pervades the entire enterprise. The dialogue is particularly wooden and the actors struggle through mixed metaphors.”
“There’s nothing inherently wrong with Glenrothan, but it leaves everything on the surface without trying to dig any deeper.”
Glenrothan is in cinemas on Friday 17 April.
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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.