The Paperboy

R

Released Oct 5, 2012

1 hr. 47 min.

Crime

Drama

List

45%

146 Reviews

Tomatometer

33%

10,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

In 1969 Florida, reporter Ward Jansen (Matthew McConaughey) returns to his hometown to write a story about death-row inmate Hillary Van Wetter (John Cusack), who was convicted of murdering a racist lawman. Ward hires his younger brother, Jack (Zac Efron), as a driver and, together with his partner, Yardley (David Oyelowo), gets to work. Though the possibility exists that Van Wetter is innocent, Ward and Yardley unwisely trust a vixen (Nicole Kidman) who will do anything to set the convict free.

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Critics Consensus

Trashy and melodramatic, The Paperboy is enlivened by a strong cast and a steamy, sordid plot, but it's uneven and often veers into camp.

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Madison A

I loved the story telling/narration. I probably would have given this a crap rating had the ending not completely shocked me to my core. It's not the best movie I have ever seen but I didn't want to stop watching till it was over

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

08/11/23

Full Review

Wendy V

Such an all star cast for such a bad movie.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

07/30/23

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Fred N

It's hard to like this movie. Great cast and performances, you can clearly see the novel it was based on. Atmospheric, bleak, and violent, it's a book I would never read. No Hollywood ending here.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

06/07/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Film che prende quasi da subito la stessa fisionomia dei suoi personaggi; inquieti, indecifrabili e anche piuttosto fastidiosi. Nessuno pensa e agisce con la dovuta normalità, seppure il contesto non sia così fuori dagli schemi. Qualche scena decisamente ad altissimo impatto visivo cerca di disturbare maggiormente lo spettatore, finendo comunque per essere esageratamente spinta e cruenta. Nessun personaggio ha uno sviluppo positivo, tutti quelli elaborati si fanno trascinare nello stesso vortice di scelte sbagliate; e i comprimari vengono totalmente ignorati nell'ultima parte del film. La scelta è sembrata quella di cercare di conquistare con scene spinte e volgari, crude e cruente; scelta sbagliata.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

02/12/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Mildly interesting but not exactly what was expected, I was expecting the tale of a demented and deranged paperboy. With a competent and star studded cast it still fails to rise above that cast and mere competency.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/07/23

Full Review

Audience Member

More twists and turns than a roller coaster! Its bizarre and sexy and interesting the whole way through! Mathew McConaughey John Cusack Nicole Kidman Zach Efron Macy Gray! It's a must see for the cast alone. You will see these actors like you have never seen them before so do not miss this one!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

01/14/23

Full Review

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Lee Daniels

Director

Matthew McConaughey

Ward Jansen

Zac Efron

Jack Jansen

David Oyelowo

Yardley Acheman

Macy Gray

Anita Chester

John Cusack

Hillary Van Wetter

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Larushka Ivan-Zadeh

metro.co.uk

Fetid, scuzzy, revolting, funny, erotic, perplexing and provocative, it's like the bastard child of Cape Fear, Written On The Wind and Killer Joe.

Rated: 4/5

Sep 5, 2017

Full Review

Judi Jordan

Shadow and Act

If you like that freaky, perverted feeling of spying on an even bigger freak show, you will find this film both fascinating and horrible to watch.

Aug 14, 2017

Full Review

Ryan Gilbey

New Statesman

Daniels turns out to be the ideal director for a film about the tendency of desire to turn sane minds to guacamole.

Nov 9, 2016

Full Review

Brian T. Carney

Washington Blade

The Paperboy fails to gel despite its strong cast.

May 18, 2022

Full Review

David Reddish

Queerty

Call it Tennessee Williams by way of Jerry Springer.

Rated: 3/4

Mar 20, 2022

Full Review

Leigh Paatsch

Herald Sun (Australia)

Set in the late 1960s, the movie is tactless, shameless and almost proudly seedy. Nevertheless, it is always highly watchable, prone to truly fascinate an audience as it also genuinely appalls them.

Rated: 3/5

Oct 19, 2018

Full Review

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Synopsis

In 1969 Florida, reporter Ward Jansen (Matthew McConaughey) returns to his hometown to write a story about death-row inmate Hillary Van Wetter (John Cusack), who was convicted of murdering a racist lawman. Ward hires his younger brother, Jack (Zac Efron), as a driver and, together with his partner, Yardley (David Oyelowo), gets to work. Though the possibility exists that Van Wetter is innocent, Ward and Yardley unwisely trust a vixen (Nicole Kidman) who will do anything to set the convict free.

Director: Lee Daniels
Executive Producer: Danny Dimbort, Trevor Short, John Thompson, Boaz Davidson
Screenwriter: Peter Dexter, Lee Daniels
Distributor: Millennium Films
Production Co: Nu Image, E1 Entertainment, Lee Daniels Entertainment
Rating: R (Strong Sexual Content|Language|Violence)
Genre: Crime, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 5, 2012, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): May 22, 2017
Box Office (Gross USA): $628.2K

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