Life Itself

Play trailer

2:26

Life Itself

R

2018

1h 58m

Comedy

Drama

Romance

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

13%

Tomatometer

154 Reviews

83%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

College sweethearts Will and Abby fall in love, get married and prepare to bring their first child into the world. As their story unfolds in New York, fate links them to a group of people in Seville, Spain, including a troubled young woman, a man and his granddaughter, a wealthy landowner and a plantation manager.

Watch on Prime Video

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

A mawkish melodrama that means less the more it tries to say, Life Itself suggests writer-director Dan Fogelman's talents are best suited to television.

Read Critics Reviews

Robbie Collin

Kermode & Mayo's Film Review

Every big dramatic moment is sapped of all its energy entirely.

Jan 12, 2019

Full Review

Tim Robey

Daily Telegraph (UK)

The film's indulgences are so heart-on-sleeve that it's hard to differentiate watching it from hearing someone pitch their very bad screenplay ideas with no attempt to read the room...

Rated: 1/5

Jan 6, 2019

Full Review

Wendy Ide

Observer (UK)

Despite the suffering ladled on to the characters, I remained stonily unmoved throughout.

Rated: 1/5

Jan 5, 2019

Full Review

Calum Cooper

Source (Scotland)

The film is trying to show how one thing can impact several lives for better and for worse. This isn’t a bad idea, and there are occasional bursts of appeal scattered about. But the execution is hopelessly barbaric.

Rated: 1/5

Jul 14, 2024

Full Review

Ryan McQuade

InSession Film

The most insulting and manipulative movie of the year.

Rated: F

Apr 3, 2024

Full Review

M.N. Miller

Ready Steady Cut

Life Itself is too self-indulgent, sappy, and overly sentimental for its own good. By the last third, it becomes manipulative and even tedious.

Rated: 1.5/5

Aug 16, 2022

Full Review

Read all reviews

Kent D

This movie grabbed my heart from the beginning and never let go.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

11/24/25

Full Review

Phil B.

At the very least it’s absolutely worth watching. Not getting the credit it deserves

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

10/22/25

Full Review

Daniel U

Una historia conmovedora, con una intención buena pero una ejecución que se siente aletargada y en momentos cancina, el primer tercio brillantemente enganchante, segundo tercio baja el ritmo y se siente de relleno, lo último meramente predecible pero a su vez cálido

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

09/09/25

Full Review

Morgan G.

The first 30 minutes of this is iconic. The rest is just an added bonus. We laugh, we cry, we relate. I have watched this movie a dozen times and I still love it.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

08/06/25

Full Review

Joseph M

Here's the thing about "Life Itself"—it is an unabashed, Bildungsromanesqe melodrama. Reviewers seem to balk at melodrama as a generic convention. Have they liked a melodrama since "Moulin Rouge!"? The cinematography is good-looking, the colors are lovely, I'm a sucker for multigenerational stories (despite that "This Is Us" is a waste of primetime, Milo Ventimiglia, and Sterling Brown, whose storylines were the only thing dragging me through that first season). It's not perfect, but I enjoyed it. Give it a try.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

06/29/25

Full Review

Michael O

Critics wre expecting too much. It's a romantic movie that hits you right in the feels. One of my favorites!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/28/25

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Dan Fogelman

Director

Oscar Isaac

Will Dempsey

Olivia Wilde

Abby Dempsey

Antonio Banderas

Mr. Saccione

Annette Bening

Dr. Cait Morris

Mandy Patinkin

Irwin Dempsey

You Hurt My Feelings

94%

64%

You Hurt My Feelings

Watchlist

TRAILER

for You Hurt My Feelings

The Good House

71%

76%

The Good House

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Good House

Sister of the Groom

50%

21%

Sister of the Groom

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Sister of the Groom

Her

95%

82%

Her

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

18 Rotten Movies We Loved from 2018

The House with a Clock in Its Walls Ticks Along Tolerably

Toronto International Film Festival Line-Up: 8 Films Set to Shake Up Awards Season

Life Itself: Trailer 1

2:26

Life Itself: Teaser Trailer 1

1:00

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

College sweethearts Will and Abby fall in love, get married and prepare to bring their first child into the world. As their story unfolds in New York, fate links them to a group of people in Seville, Spain, including a troubled young woman, a man and his granddaughter, a wealthy landowner and a plantation manager.

Director: Dan Fogelman
Producer: Marty Bowen, Wyck Godfrey, Aaron Ryder, Dan Fogelman
Screenwriter: Dan Fogelman
Distributor: Amazon Studios
Production Co: FilmNation Entertainment, Temple Hill Entertainment
Rating: R (Language|Brief Drug Use|Sexual References|Some Violent Images)
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 21, 2018, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 22, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA): $4.1M
Runtime: 1h 58m

Most Popular at Home Now