When the Twin Towers went down in 2001, Charlie Fineman lost everything important in his life. Charlie runs into his old college roommate. Rekindling the friendship is the one thing that appears able to help the man recover from his grief.
For all its flaws, Reign Over Me is still surprisingly affecting.
Jeff Bayer
The Scorecard Review
March 03, 2008
The main problem is Reign Over Me always skirts around the issue instead of tackling it head on. Depression and loss are hell, and hopefully friends can be there to bring you out of it.
Binder's insistence on pitching everything at the level of either sitcom shenanigans or movie-of-the-week weepiness compromises any significance the subject matter might have.
Like the characters populating it, this film leaves us with a sense that something is missing, but it's still smart, compelling, offbeat, and worth seeing.
Tony Macklin
Fayetteville Free Weekly
February 02, 2009
Reign Over Me is like spending two hours with a shrink. Self-absorbed and repetitive, it has an occasional moment of truth, and a lot of hot air.
Director Mike Binder has twigged on to the fact that if you root Sandler's genially churlish moron act into a more sober foundation, a vulnerable, believable and even lovable character can begin to emerge.
