Critics have been reacting to the new drama since it debuted at Sundance earlier this month. So now that it’s streaming worldwide on Netflix for all to see, what’s the consensus? The early Rotten Tomatoes score is in – and it’s good news.
Paddleton does, at time of writing, have a strong 94% score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Mark Duplass and Ray Romano star as two misfit neighbours who go on an unlikely emotional journey when one of them is diagnosed with terminal cancer.
The film takes its name from a game they made up, and the supporting cast ropes in Christine Woods, Kadeem Hardison and Marguerite Moreau among others.
In a review graded A-, Entertainment Weekly heaped on the praise.
“Thanks to two pitch-perfect performances, Paddleton is bittersweet and poignant beyond words,” they said.
In a three-star verdict, The Guardian wrote: “Paddleton is a film riddled with dissatisfactions – it’s not heavy enough or funny enough or anywhere near as profound as the filmmakers are trying to force it to be.
“It doesn’t maintain the balance, but at the same time it does movingly convey what it might feel like to see the inconsequential things – the kitschy movies, the made-up ball games, the stove-burnt pizzas – endure while your best friend trundles to a stop.”
Variety beamed: “A movie about cancer has no right to be as consistently amusing as Paddleton – a triumph for which credit should be spread around, even if it most deservedly goes to Ray Romano.”
The Hollywood Reporter enthused, in a slightly spoiler-y verdict: “To its credit, the film doesn’t indulge in a fairy-tale ending, such as Michael having been misdiagnosed or changing his mind about ending his own life.
“Rather, it concludes with a harrowing but deeply touching scene that makes vividly clear the depth of the characters’ love for each other.
“And before you can fully recover from its devastating effects, there’s a coda quietly illustrating that life goes on. It makes you smile even while you still have a lump in your throat.”
Other movies to have exclusively landed on Netflix recently include Polar, Velvet Buzzsaw and The Breaker Upperers.
Paddleton is streaming on Netflix now.