--- title: "Ferris Bueller's Day Off: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/ferris-buellers-day-off/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/ferris-buellers-day-off" critics_score: 63 critics_reviews: 11 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." --- # Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986): what the critics said Critics' score 63 from 11 reviews: 6 positive, 2 mixed, 3 negative. Most critics like it, though not with much heat. Six of the eleven are positive, and the praise gathers around Matthew Broderick, whose breezy, likeable performance nearly every admirer treats as the reason the film works. Hughes gets credit for skewering the school authorities, for the Chicago locations, and for Cameron’s story, which the warmer reviews say gives the comedy more weight than its thin premise suggests. The spread is wide. Three reviews are flatly negative, and their complaint is the same: Ferris himself. The Los Angeles Times finds him too smug and invincible, Time Out wishes someone had confronted him, and Slant reads the film as a celebration of upper-middle-class entitlement. Variety finds no plot at all. Even the sceptics enjoy Jeffrey Jones as the principal, and The AV Club, revisiting it, calls it engaging but unfunny comfort food. The objections come from 1986 and from later reappraisals alike, so this is not simply a film that has dated. ## The Hollywood Reporter — THR Staff Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 5 June 2015. The critic calls it a free-spirited romp and summer sleeper hit that cleverly skewers high-school authority figures. Broderick's breezy, engaging performance is singled out as a highlight. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/ferris-buellers-day-thrs-1986-800350/) ## The New York Times — Nina Darnton Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 11 June 1986. Ferris Bueller leads a charmed life and skillfully manipulates others to play hooky with inspired genius. John Hughes brings his finger on the pulse of teen-age America to this story of a popular senior's day off. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1986/06/11/movies/screen-a-youth-s-day-off.html) ## Empire — Adam Smith Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2014. The critic calls the film an irresistibly likeable and sunny comedy that celebrates youth in mid-80s America while having deeper roots than expected. Broderick's central performance is singled out as astonishing and essential to its charm. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/ferris-bueller-day-review/) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 11 June 1986. A sweet, warm-hearted comedy about a teenager who skips school to help his best friend gain self-respect through a day in Chicago. The film is slight, whimsical and sweet, with its heart in the right place despite simplistic solutions. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/ferris-buellers-day-off-1986) ## The AV Club — Scott Tobias Rating C. 25 January 2006. The review finds the film has aged poorly into engaging but unfunny comfort food. It singles out the main trio's city adventure and Chicago locations for mild appeal while criticizing flat supporting material. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/ferris-buellers-day-off-1798201393) ## Time Out — SGo Fi1m's normalised score 50/100 (inferred from the text). 17 June 2012. The critic describes Ferris as a manipulative boy who gets whatever he wants while screwing others over and being praised for it. Hughes celebrates his ingenuity but ultimately underscores that people matter more than possessions, though the reviewer finds Ferris irritating enough to wish someone had confronted him. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/ferris-buellers-day-off) ## Los Angeles Times — Patrick Goldstein Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 11 June 1986. Hughes miscalculates by making the hero too smug and invincible, turning the film into a stale, sour-edged celebration of the New Conformist. The principal's comic performance is a highlight, but the Chicago travelogue feels dull and passionless. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-06-11-ca-10612-story.html) ## Slant Magazine Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 6 May 2009. The critic views the film as a carefree but ultimately unchallenging celebration of upper-middle-class entitlement. The art-museum sequence is praised for its satirical precision amid the suburban satire. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/ferris-buellers-day-off/) ## Variety — Variety Staff Rating **. 31 December 1985. John Hughes is on an off day with a thin premise and total absence of plot or involving situations. Broderick's likeability cannot compensate, though Jeffrey Jones delivers a delicious comic performance as the principal. [Read the review](https://variety.com/1985/film/reviews/ferris-bueller-s-day-off-1200426925/) ## Paste — Bonnie Stiernberg Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 10 June 2016. The critic considers Ferris Bueller’s Day Off her all-time favorite film, a personal constant that feels inherited and culturally ubiquitous. She praises its adult take on Hughes’ teen films through its carpe diem message and how Cameron’s story elevates it from good to great. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/what-have-you-seen-today-revisiting-ferris-bueller) ## Eye for Film — Darren Amner Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 23 July 2006. The critic praises the film's snappy dialogue, catchy pop tunes, and memorable set-pieces as a thought-provoking look at adolescence. They highlight the strong cast, particularly Matthew Broderick's charming performance and the effective direction and writing by John Hughes. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/ferris-buellers-day-off-film-review-by-darren-amner) --- © 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/ferris-buellers-day-off.md