--- title: "Jay Kelly: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/jay-kelly/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/jay-kelly" critics_score: 69 critics_reviews: 16 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." --- # Jay Kelly (2025): what the critics said Critics' score 69 from 16 reviews: 9 positive, 5 mixed, 2 negative. Most critics like Jay Kelly, and the reservations they hold are fairly consistent. Praise settles first on George Clooney, cast as an ageing star reckoning with what his fame has cost his family, with several reviews calling it among his best work. Adam Sandler’s turn as the manager is singled out nearly as often, and a strand of the cooler reviews finds him the warmer presence, arguing the film asks us to feel for a central character it never quite makes sympathetic. Noah Baumbach’s script draws credit for moving between comedy and midlife melancholy without lurching. The reservations cluster around softness: the satire is called gentle to the point of thin, the sentiment indulgent, and the European train stretch in the middle slack. The spread is wide, from the Telegraph’s near-rapture to the Guardian’s dismissal of it as self-indulgent Hollywood self-adoration, though most reviews land somewhere warm and qualified. ## The Telegraph Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 5 December 2025. This deeply wise and mischievous midlife crisis comedy probes movie stardom through a silvery film star questioning what his fame has amounted to. The final scene is a knockout that pushes the conceit to breaking point and gets away with it. [Read the review](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2025/12/05/jay-kelly-review-george-clooney/) ## The i Paper — Francesca Steele Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 5 December 2025. A beautifully judged meta masterpiece about the perils of showbusiness and midlife regret, with Clooney and Sandler on fire in their roles. The smart script dances between wry humour and existential meditation, inviting the audience in at every turn. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/jay-kelly-review-clooney-sandler-on-fire-4068881) ## The Independent — Geoffrey Macnab Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 5 December 2025. Clooney gives one of his finest performances as a narcissistic ageing star whose charm eventually wears thin, revealing emotional wreckage. The cleverly crafted screenplay balances in-jokes with perceptive observations on celebrity and family, ultimately tugging at the heartstrings. [Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/jay-kelly-review-netflix-george-clooney-b2878184.html) ## The Times Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 6 December 2025. Noah Baumbach’s delightful, funny fantasia on what it is to be a star knocks on Clooney’s persona hard enough to find a telling hollowness while still allowing room for his charms. It ploughs a mellow groove with sun-kissed pleasures from a European train ride. [Read the review](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/film/article/jay-kelly-film-review-george-clooney-0kwrczh9l) ## Vulture Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 28 August 2025. Festival review. Clooney delivers the performance of his life in a role tailored to his charisma; the film ambles pleasantly through familiar territory but sneaks up emotionally on the viewer. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/article/jay-kelly-review-george-clooney-gets-the-role-of-a-lifetime.html) ## Empire — Laura Venning Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 5 December 2025. A sparkling, charming and unashamedly old-fashioned coming-of-middle-age comic drama tailored for Clooney, with strong turns from Sandler and the ensemble. It is wistful and romantic but rather thin, lacking Baumbach’s usual archness. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/jay-kelly/) ## Radio Times Rating 3/5. 28 August 2025. Festival review. The film is a glossy, inward-looking navel-gaze about a famous actor in late-career crisis that starts promisingly but becomes indulgent. It features a tender performance from Adam Sandler as the manager but fails to make the audience feel for the central character. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movies/jay-kelly-review-netflix-george-clooney-adam-sandler/) ## The Observer — Wendy Ide Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 15 November 2025. Baumbach’s gentle satire of stardom takes a soft-focus approach and finds appeal in the superficial world of Hollywood. The lead’s considerable personal charm slightly derails the redemption story about a star realising he has neglected his family. [Read the review](https://observer.co.uk/culture/film/article/wendy-ides-pick-of-other-films-jay-kelly-left-handed-girl-nuremberg-and-more) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 28 August 2025. Festival review. The critic finds the film a dire, sentimental and self-indulgent piece of cine-narcissism about a Hollywood star's midlife crisis. The sharp observations on show business are smothered by bland Tuscan sunshine and Hollywood self-adoration. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2025/aug/28/jay-kelly-review-even-a-george-clooney-sizzle-reel-cant-save-this-dire-noah-baumbach-effort) ## Financial Times — Danny Leigh Rating ★★★☆☆. 13 November 2025. Baumbach gives us a soft, Fellini-lite satire packed with in-jokes about film stardom. Clooney’s magnetism and Sandler’s vim keep the ultra-lite Hollywood satire tolerable despite its twee moments and bad zany Euro train trip. [Read the review](https://www.ft.com/content/f3b0bca8-3a79-427c-924d-145e15d2dd25) ## Los Angeles Times — Mark Olsen 14 November 2025. Clooney delivers a career-summarizing performance as a star reckoning with the toll of his ambition, supported by a strong ensemble including Sandler and Dern. The film blends sharp Hollywood satire with genuine emotional depth and visual flair, emerging as a fully formed knockout. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2025-11-14/jay-kelly-review-george-clooney-adam-sandler-laura-dern-noah-baumbach) ## The Hollywood Reporter — David Rooney 28 August 2025. Festival review. The critic finds the film more often distancing than disarming and mid-tier Baumbach at best. Adam Sandler’s nuanced performance as the manager creates intimacy and heart that the title character largely lacks. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/jay-kelly-review-george-clooney-adam-sandler-noah-baumbach-1236354571/) ## The New Yorker 17 November 2025. The film follows an aging actor too absorbed in his career to properly raise his daughters, with memories filmed as literal mini-movies. It explores how show-business success proves incompatible with fatherhood. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/11/17/sentimental-value-movie-review-jay-kelly) ## The New York Times — Alissa Wilkinson 4 December 2025. The film centers on a Clooney-like star confronting the personal costs of his fame and success through memories rendered as movie clips. It is a peculiar, multi-register work that feels personal to both its star and its director. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/04/movies/jay-kelly-review.html) ## The Playlist — Rafa Sales Ross Rating B+. 28 August 2025. Festival review. Clooney anchors this moving dramedy as an aging star confronting the gap between his onscreen image and personal life, with Baumbach and Mortimer crafting witty, earnest scenes that celebrate cinema's magic. The film occasionally drags in its European train-set middle with side plots, but recovers for a tender, crowd-pleasing finale. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/jay-kelly-review-george-clooney-anchors-noah-baumbachs-moving-ode-to-the-magic-of-movie-stars-venice-20250828/) ## Deadline — Pete Hammond Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 28 August 2025. Festival review. The critic finds the film a smart and perceptive character study that effortlessly shifts between light comedy and poignant drama. He singles out George Clooney's convincing performance as a movie star confronting an identity crisis for particular praise. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2025/08/jay-kelly-review-george-clooney-noah-baumbach-venice-fest-1236498482/) ## NME — Matthew Turner Rating 4/5. 29 August 2025. Festival review. The critic finds the film an enjoyable meta comedy-drama with strong performances, especially from Clooney as the aging star and Sandler as his manager. The sharp script and mix of laughs and emotion are highlighted as keeping it consistently entertaining despite some self-indulgence. [Read the review](https://www.nme.com/reviews/film-reviews/jay-kelly-review-george-clooney-adam-sandler-3888682) ## The Wrap — Steve Pond Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 28 August 2025. Festival review. The critic calls the film one of Baumbach's most adroit balancing acts, a dramedy that stays light on its feet while dealing with middle-aged panic and melancholy. He singles out George Clooney's ideal, self-aware portrayal of a pampered star for particular praise. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/jay-kelly-review-george-clooney-noah-baumbach/) ## Collider — Ross Bonaime Rating 6/10. 20 October 2025. The critic finds it scattered and shallow despite good intentions and strong performances from Sandler and Clooney, praising the exploration of shared memories but criticizing lack of depth and follow-through on ideas about celebrity and regret. [Read the review](https://collider.com/jay-kelly-review-george-clooney-adam-sandler-noah-baumbach-netflix/) ## The Ringer — Adam Nayman Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 14 November 2025. The critic sees it as a clever but overly controlled and predictable metafiction that doesn't fully commit to its satire or emotional depth, praising Sandler's supporting performance and showbiz textures while complaining about the focus on the main character making it airless. [Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2025/11/14/movies/jay-kelly-netflix-movie-review-george-clooney) ## Eye for Film — Paul Risker Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 19 October 2025. Festival review. The critic finds the film has good intentions in exploring fame and fatherhood but is undermined by overly romantic, sentimental and saccharine tones that detract from its deeper aims. Clooney's performance and the themes create friction with a nostalgic, classic Hollywood style that risks feeling disingenuous. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/jay-kelly-2025-film-review-by-paul-risker) ## Paste — Jesse Hassenger Rating 7.1. 29 September 2025. Festival review. The critic finds it a good but minor and incomplete Baumbach comedy, praising the performances especially Sandler's and some witty moments, but noting it feels scattered and not as sharp or hilarious as previous works. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/noah-baumbach/jay-kelly-nyff-review-george-clooney-adam-sandler-noah-baumbach) --- © 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/jay-kelly.md