64
Metascore
11 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 75Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertSellers works. He develops a character and plays it, for better or worse, for the whole movie.
- 75Slant MagazineWes GreeneSlant MagazineWes GreeneThe comically rich visual tapestry of Blake Edwards’s The Party still endures.
- 70The DissolveScott TobiasThe DissolveScott TobiasWhether Edwards intended it or not—and his inclusion of hippies in the third act points to yes—The Party seems keyed into the spirit of ’68, with the house representing the upending of old money and hidebound tradition.
- 70The New York TimesJ. HobermanThe New York TimesJ. HobermanIt’s the tension between Sellers’s inane tact and the general tastelessness of his surroundings that gives the movie its zing.
- 67The A.V. ClubTasha RobinsonThe A.V. ClubTasha RobinsonVeteran slapstick fans may get a kick out of the free-form antics, and the party's chaotic ending is suitably memorable, but empathetic viewers are likely to be as uncomfortable with Sellers' improv as the partygoers he leads into havoc.
- 60Time OutTime OutQuite a few very funny moments, but one doesn't laugh so much as admire the ingenuity.
- 60The New YorkerPauline KaelThe New YorkerPauline KaelIt's too long for its one-note jokes, and often too obvious to be really funny. But it's agreeable in tone, though as it goes on, the gags don't have any particular connection with the touching, maddening Indian character that Sellers plays so wickedly well.
- The script quickly runs out of gas thanks to the one-joke story line and Blake's uninspired direction.