--- title: "Listen to Me Marlon: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/listen-to-me-marlon/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/listen-to-me-marlon" critics_score: 72 critics_reviews: 14 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." --- # Listen to Me Marlon (2015): what the critics said Critics' score 72 from 14 reviews: 9 positive, 4 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics admire Listen to Me Marlon, and the praise lands almost entirely in one place: the tapes. Brando recorded himself for years, talking about acting, his childhood and his failures, and the reviews agree that hearing him analyse his own life is the film’s reason to exist. Several call the effect ghostly or revelatory, and the archive collage Riley builds around the voice is thought textured and well assembled. The reservations concern what is done with the tapes rather than the tapes themselves. The New Yorker thinks the finished film unworthy of its source and finds Riley’s imagery, sound and editing a distraction from the voice. The AV Club calls it ordinary, telling anyone who already knows Brando little new, and dislikes the score. HeyUGuys, otherwise enthusiastic, notes that some of the audio is hard to make out. The spread is wide, from near-raves at Vulture and Variety down to one outright rejection, with most reviews settling comfortably on the positive side. ## Vulture — David Edelstein Fi1m's normalised score 95/100 (inferred from the text). 29 July 2015. Edelstein calls the film an exceptionally searching documentary and a fitting epitaph for Brando. He praises how Brando’s own recordings and images reveal the actor’s insight into his art and the pain behind his life. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2015/07/movie-review-listen-to-me-marlon.html) ## Variety — Dennis Harvey Fi1m's normalised score 88/100 (inferred from the text). 31 January 2015. Festival review. Harvey calls the documentary a fascinating, superbly crafted portrait that lets Brando tell and analyze his own story. He particularly praises the textured archival collage and the candid self-questioning heard in Brando’s tapes. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2015/film/reviews/sundance-film-review-listen-to-me-marlon-1201420110/) ## Los Angeles Times — Kenneth Turan Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 30 July 2015. Turan finds the documentary revelatory and strikingly emotional, presenting Brando as complex and deeply self-aware. He particularly praises the unprecedented use of Brando’s personal audio recordings to reveal his candid reflections on acting and life. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-marlon-review-20150731-story.html) ## IndieWire — Nikola Grozdanovic Rating B+. 28 July 2015. Festival review. The critic finds the documentary gripping and moving despite rough assembly. Its strongest feature is Brando’s self-analysis through his own recordings, which offers absorbing insight into the man behind the actor. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/criticism/culture/review-listen-to-me-marlon-provides-gripping-unprecedented-insight-into-the-acting-legend-261374/) ## Time Out — Dave Calhoun Rating 4/5. 18 October 2015. Calhoun presents the documentary as fascinating and ghostly. He singles out its use of old tapes and film footage to let Brando narrate his own life. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/listen-to-me-marlon) ## Empire — Angie Errigo Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 20 October 2015. The review finds the documentary singular and compelling, though it conveys both delight and distress. It particularly praises Brando’s private recordings and the insight they offer into his acting and life. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/listen-marlon-review/) ## The AV Club — Mike D'Angelo Rating B-. 28 July 2015. D’Angelo finds the documentary interesting but ordinary, offering little that cinephiles do not already know. He praises Brando’s enduring fascination and the poignancy of hearing his private self-hypnosis recordings, while faulting the score. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/brando-s-extraordinary-career-gets-an-ordinary-treatmen-1798184472) ## RogerEbert.com Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). The page does not reveal the critic’s verdict. Its browser-check screen provides no praise or criticism to summarize. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/listen-to-me-marlon-2015) ## Screen Daily — David D'Arcy Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 1 February 2015. The review’s verdict is unavailable because the article body is hidden. No praise or complaint can be identified from the visible text. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/listen-to-me-marlon/5082518.article) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 29 July 2015. The review’s verdict cannot be determined from the page provided. The blocked page reveals no details about what the critic praised or criticized. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/29/movies/review-listen-to-me-marlon-explores-brandos-life-of-contention.html) ## The Guardian — Mark Kermode Rating 3/5. 25 October 2015. Kermode presents the documentary as an intimate, anguished portrait of Brando’s decline. He praises how Riley uses Brando’s self-analysing audio archive to get under the actor’s skin. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/oct/25/listen-to-me-marlon-review-intimate-portrait) ## The New Yorker Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). The critic finds the finished film unworthy of its remarkable source material. They praise Brando’s intimate recordings but fault Riley’s distracting imagery, sound, and editing. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/movies/listen-to-me-marlon) ## HeyUGuys — Stefan Pape Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. The critic considers the documentary a triumphant, intimate portrait told in Brando’s own words. They praise Riley’s skillful shaping of the recordings but note that some audio is difficult to make out. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/listen-to-me-marlon-review/) ## The Playlist Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 27 March 2015. Festival review. The headline presents the documentary as gripping and as revealing the man behind Marlon Brando’s public image. The page text is blocked, so no further praise or criticism is available. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/new-directorsnew-films-review-gripping-listen-to-me-marlon-reveals-the-man-behind-the-myth-of-marlon-brando-20150327/) --- © 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/listen-to-me-marlon.md