---
title: "Boomerang: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/boomerang/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/boomerang"
critics_score: 53
critics_reviews: 8
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Boomerang (1992): what the critics said

Critics' score 53 from 8 reviews: 1 positive, 5 mixed, 2 negative.

The consensus on Boomerang is lukewarm rather than hostile. Most critics find a slick, intermittently funny sex comedy with a decent run of laughs, and the praise clusters firmly around the supporting cast, who are credited with giving the film most of its energy. Variety singles out Geoffrey Holder, John Witherspoon, Grace Jones and Eartha Kitt as scene stealers, and Radio Times says much the same of the ensemble. Murphy himself is thought to be in good form, with Empire particularly enjoying his turn as a lovesick fool.

The reservations are about shape and about Murphy. The reviews call it overlong, patchy and, in the harsher cases, weighed down by shallow, sexist characters. The spread is wide, from warm to dismissive. The Los Angeles Times is the sharpest dissenter, arguing that Murphy’s move towards romantic leads squanders his comic gifts and that he will not play the cad the story needs.

## Empire — Lloyd Bradley

Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. 

Bradley finds the comedy slick and often very funny, though Murphy’s egotism holds it back. He especially praises Murphy’s transformation into a lovesick fool and the lively supporting comedy around him.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/boomerang-review/)

## RogerEbert.com

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 

The page shows only a browser-check message, so the critic’s verdict is unavailable. It provides no information about what the review praises or criticizes.

[Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/boomerang-1992)

## The New Yorker — Michael Sragow

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 13 July 1992. 

The issue listing identifies a review of “Boomerang,” but the review’s verdict is not available on this page. It provides no praise or complaint about the film.

[Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1992/07/13)

## The New York Times — Janet Maslin

Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 1 July 1992. 

The page is inaccessible, so the critic’s verdict cannot be verified. The available text does not reveal what the review praises or criticizes.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/01/movies/reviews-film-the-tables-are-turned-on-a-smug-sweet-talking-don-juan.html)

## Radio Times — Joanna Berry

Rating 3/5. 

Berry calls the comedy amiable but slightly overlong, with Murphy in good form. She singles out the supporting performances for giving the film a buzz.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-vy5h05/boomerang/)

## Time Out — SGr

Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 

The critic finds the sex comedy patchy. They single out its role-reversal premise, in which the ad-man experiences being a sex object.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/boomerang-1)

## Variety — Lawrence Cohn

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 29 June 1992. 

Cohn finds the comedy ill-fitting and weighed down by sexist, shallow characters, despite several funny scenes. He praises the supporting cast and singles out Geoffrey Holder, John Witherspoon, Grace Jones, and Eartha Kitt as scene stealers.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/1992/film/reviews/boomerang-2-1200429887/)

## Los Angeles Times — Kenneth Turan

Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 1 July 1992. 

Turan finds the film listless and frustrating, arguing that Eddie Murphy’s shift toward romantic leading-man roles squanders his comic talent. He singles out Murphy’s unwillingness to play the flawed cad the story requires as a central problem.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-07-01-ca-1033-story.html)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/boomerang.md