Battle in SeattleMovie Reviews

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So-so
Avg. Critic Score: 54 out of 100 Mixed or average reviews Metascore® based on all critic reviews
Information for Parents:
16 Iffy for 16+
Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

  • 91
    Entertainment Weekly | Owen Gleiberman

    His (Townsend) staging has a tumult, a multi-POV immediacy that brings to mind Paul Greengrass' "Bloody Sunday." Read full review

  • 75
    Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert

    The result is not quite a documentary and not quite a drama, but interesting all the same. It uses the approach of Haskell Wexler's "Medium Cool" (1969), but without the same urgency. Read full review

  • 70
    The Hollywood Reporter | Kirk Honeycutt

    While it makes no bones about where its sympathies lie, these fictional stories show a genuine fascination with the role politics plays on both sides of such confrontations and how things can spin out of control with no single person to blame. Read full review

  • 60
    Variety | Dennis Harvey

    Picture's ambition, cogency and decent performances make up for its uneven aspects. Woody Harrelson has some especially good moments as a cop. Read full review

  • 50
    Boston Globe | Ty Burr

    The chief culprits are Townsend's TV-movie characterizations and a very muddled message. Read full review

  • 50
    San Francisco Chronicle |

    Getting an inside view on events is fascinating enough to carry the movie. Read full review

  • 50
    The New York Times | Stephen Holden

    A drama is only as convincing as its characters. The people awkwardly forced together in Battle in Seattle are rhetorical mouthpieces tied to the sketchy plotlines of a so-so Hollywood ensemble movie. Read full review

  • 50
    Los Angeles Times | Kenneth Turan

    Townsend's sincerity, his admiration for the idealism of the people behind the anti-WTO protests, is never in doubt, but combining drama with historical re-creation is frankly a challenge his filmmaking skills are not up to. Read full review

  • 30
    Washington Post |

    It's a movie by a true believer in anti-globalization, and it may win a few converts, but not among devotees of convincing, capable cinema. Read full review

  • 20
    New York Daily News | Joe Neumaier

    Well-intentioned but as earnest as a college freshman discovering campus politics. Read full review

View more reviews for Battle in Seattle on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 16+ Political ensemble drama is provocative, preachy.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that this drama about the volatile environment in Seattle during the World Trade Organization meeting in 1999 features realistic depictions of political protest, from putting up unauthorized banners to street marching and blockading intersections. The police response to some of these protests is equally realistic, ranging from tear gas and pepper spray to brutal beatings. Teens may not be clamoring to see a movie that features extensive discussion of political and economic issues like free speech and free trade, but if they see it, they may find themselves interested in learning more about the topics it raises. Expect some swearing, smoking, and drinking.
  • Families can talk about the many social, political, and economic topics that the film raises, from concerns about corporate control of the media to the environmental ramifications of modern industry. Families can also discuss whether a film like this is made to provide answers or provoke questions. Do you think the filmmakers are playing favorites in their arguments and scenes? Is it OK for movies based on real-life events to have a particular bias toward one "side" or the other?
The good stuff
  • message true0 Positive messages: Extensive discussion of the nature of political protest, the World Trade Organization, corporate ownership of property, and the nature of global capital; extensive discussion of First Amendment rights and violent vs. non-violent protest.
What to watch for
  • violence false3 Violence: Destruction of private property; police response to protestors includes pepper spray, tear gas, rubber bullets, beatings with truncheons, and more. A pregnant woman is struck in the stomach with a truncheon by a passing policeman; viewers see her agony, blood, and suffering as she loses the baby. Protesters are pepper-sprayed at close range and with great vigor by police. An accidental death is often referenced but takes place off screen.
  • sex false2 Sex: Morning-after chat between two lovers; kissing; some sexual language.
  • language false4 Language: Occasional strong language includes "damn," "hell," "f--k," "s--t," and "motherf---er." Police are referred to as "pigs."
  • consumerism false1 Consumerism: Some brands -- like Starbucks -- are visible in the background.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false2 Drinking, drugs and smoking: One character smokes; characters drink hard liquor.
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Battle in Seattle Movie Ratings + Reviews

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So-so 342 fan reviews

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