Little Joe

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1:57

Little Joe

2019

1h 45m

Horror

Sci-Fi

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

67%

Tomatometer

129 Reviews

41%

Popcornmeter

100+ Ratings

A plant created via genetic engineering appears to produce curious changes in the people and animals it comes into contact with.

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Critics Consensus

Little Joe's unorthodox approach may baffle horror fans lured in by its premise -- but like its title character, the end result exerts a creepy thrall.

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Kevin Maher

The Times (UK)

This agonisingly slow pseudo sci-fi has camera moves, performances and lines of dialogue that. Seem. To. Take. An. Eternity. To. Deliver. Without. Much. Impact. Or. Dramatic. Pay Off.

Rated: 2/5

Feb 24, 2020

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Charlotte O'Sullivan

London Evening Standard

It's a little film. But it's epic.

Rated: 4/5

Feb 24, 2020

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Mark Kermode

Observer (UK)

For some, Little Joe may seem too sterile to engage emotionally, but I found it glassily unsettling - even more so on second viewing. Inhale at your peril.

Rated: 4/5

Feb 23, 2020

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Julian Singleton

Cinapse

Little Joe is an intriguing tale of rapid depersonalization, though its overall effect may vary depending on how much viewers are willing to imprint onto it.

Jul 12, 2025

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Diana Tuova

Spotlight on Film

Little Joe is excruciatingly awkward, unforgivably contrived and downright boring.

Rated: 1.5/5

Jul 29, 2024

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Agustín Acevedo Kanopa

La Diaria

Little Joe isn't emotional or even tacky enough in its convictions and twists to be fun —like a lot of B-movie sci-fi movies—nor is it as elevated and complex as Upstream Color (Shane Carruth, 2013)

Rated: 5/10

Feb 27, 2023

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Cylon W

In nature, the term "zombie" refers to one organism hijacking the well-being of another (see 11/2025 Nat Geo). This film explores a very plausible science base outbreak. If you want serious sci-fi, this film is a very thoughtful must see. However, if you're looking for over the top action/horror (i.e., World War Z or Resident Evil), you'll be disappointed.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/15/25

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James H

Slow moving but interesting. It will anger some, but I found it quite good. The only disturbing thing is some of the main characters shirt collars.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

01/06/25

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Jay A

Ugh…wasted 2 hours of my life. Nothing happened, waited and waited....and waited.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

10/29/24

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Julian S

Disappointingly flat and dull for a film with such a visually striking color palette.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

08/28/24

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Dave

There's something not quite right about this film. I think it's trying to capture the creepiness of old TV series like 'Chocky' or 'Children of the Stones', but the production values are too high to make it work. The normally great actors were clearly given a directive line to be a bit stiff throughout, presumably to increase the uncertainty about whether the plants are affecting people or not—a brave strategy that unfortunately doesn't pay off.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

04/02/24

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ana e

Its supposed to be horror? I thought it was an arthouse or student movie. There is really only 20 minutes of plot stretched out over 2 hours. The music and sound is particularly bad. If you can't stand overbearing music, don't watch this movie. It has a lot of Japanese-y music for some unknown reason - shakuhachi and similar. Its either so quiet you can't hear anything, or so ridiculously loud you'll need to turn it down. I like Japanese music, but this was a lousy use of it.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/18/24

Full Review

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Little Joe: Trailer 1

1:57

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Synopsis

A plant created via genetic engineering appears to produce curious changes in the people and animals it comes into contact with.

Director: Jessica Hausner
Producer: Philippe Bober, Bruno Wagner, Martin Gschlacht
Screenwriter: Jessica Hausner, Géraldine Bajard
Distributor: Magnolia Pictures
Production Co: Coop99 Filmproduktion
Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi
Original Language: British English
Release Date (Theaters): Dec 6, 2019, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 6, 2019
Box Office (Gross USA): $23.3K
Runtime: 1h 45m
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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