Sphere 1998

Critics score:
12 / 100

Reviews provided by RottenTomatoes

Susan Stark, Detroit News: Read more

Janet Maslin, New York Times: While this is no quick-witted treat on a par with Mr. Levinson's Wag the Dog, it's a solid thriller with showy scientific overtones. Read more

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times: As the umpteenth entrant in the We-Are-Not-Alone sweepstakes, Sphere feels awfully familiar because it is. Read more

Entertainment Weekly: Read more

Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly: Read more

Rick Groen, Globe and Mail: Given its situational premise -- outer space goes underwater -- Sphere is filled with visual potential, yet Levinson can't tap it. He's just a whole lot more comfortable trying to tame the human software than the technical hardware. Read more

David Denby, New York Magazine/Vulture: There are some things that humankind is just better off not knowing about. Read more

James Berardinelli, ReelViews: Somewhere out there, maybe there's a small cadre of film-goers who will appreciate Sphere's dubious charms, but I'm not among them. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: The only excellence is in the acting, and even then the screenplay puts the characters through so many U-turns that dramatic momentum is impossible. Read more

Charles Taylor, Salon.com: Sphere winds up just a load of balls. Read more

Mick LaSalle, San Francisco Chronicle: The ending, though emotionally satisfying, collapses under scrutiny. This lack of payoff is a real flaw in a film pitched to a discriminating sci-fi mentality. Read more

Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune: Read more

Derek Adams, Time Out: Three major stars being involved, it all wraps up happily but implausibly. Read more

Todd McCarthy, Variety: An empty shell. Read more