Save the DateMovie Reviews

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.

  • 80
    New York Magazine (Vulture) |

    Save the Date works best when it's getting under your skin, and it does that when it's capturing the queasy halfway point - part sadistic, part bittersweet - of still loving somebody while trying to move on to someone new. It's a kind of subtlety that movies, especially American movies, rarely do well, but this quietly unassuming, secretly brilliant little charmer nails it. Read full review

  • 70
    Movieline |

    Mohan's film may not manage anything out of the ordinary, but it does present a convincingly contemporary depiction of relationships and dating when the goalposts have been moved, or when we're at least trying to pretend they have. Read full review

  • 60
    New York Daily News | Elizabeth Weitzman

    Mohan should have made a little more effort for us. Another pass at the screenplay probably would have done it. But one gets the sense he's already moved on to the next thing. Read full review

  • 58
    indieWIRE | Eric Kohn

    This is still a pretty familiar journey that's easier to pity than hate -- much like Caplan's character. Read full review

  • 50
    NPR | Ella Taylor

    Save the Date has the vapid, beige feel of an off-the-peg product made to exploit a niche market rather than a film with something on its mind about what it means to make the jump from youth to adulthood today. Read full review

  • 50
    New York Post | Sara Stewart

    While Caplan works well in theory as an antiromantic-comedy heroine, director and co-screenwriter Michael Mohan just doesn't give her enough to do. Read full review

  • 50
    Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum

    Everyone in the cast (including Geoffrey Arend, Mark Webber, and Caplan's Party Down colleague Martin Starr) is talented enough to deserve a stronger story line than this. Read full review

  • 50
    The Hollywood Reporter |

    Short on both romance and humor. Read full review

  • 40
    Time Out New York |

    Whether it's Caplan and Webber trading goofy dance moves or Brie being perkily OCD-ridden, Date works best as a collection of winsome, unconnected vignettes; its ideal distribution model would be piece by piece on YouTube. Read full review

  • 25
    Slant Magazine |

    What's worst about the film is how it appropriates its main character's noncommittal selfishness to support its own quaint, anti-establishment themes. Read full review

View more reviews for Save the Date on Metacritic

Information for Parents
Common Sense Media says Iffy for 16+ Racy romcom has realistic characters but needs more plot.
What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that Save the Date is an indie romantic comedy about two sisters at opposite end of the relationship spectrum -- one is busy planning her wedding, while the other is coming off a bad break-up. Expect frank emotional discussions, both between the siblings and between couples, and many sex scenes; they don't show any sensitive body parts, but they're still plenty racy (including some vigorous motions and explicit sounds). Characters drink, get drunk, smoke pot, and make bad decisions while wasted. There's also plenty of swearing, including "f--k," "s--t," and more.
  • Families can talk about how Save the Date presents sex and relationships. Does it offer realistic, healthy alternatives to being with someone? Parents, talk to you teens about your own values on these topics.
  • What do you think about the sisterly relationship between Sarah and Beth? Does it seem realistic? Teens: If you have siblings, how do you think you'll get along with them when you're adults?
  • Talk about Sarah's choices. Why did she reject a proposal? Who do you think is the best partner for her, Kevin, Jonathan, or neither?
The good stuff
  • message true1 Positive messages: Sarah and Beth are both muddling through life and trying to do the right thing. They're not completely successful, but that feels pretty realistic. In the end, they, like most everyone else, are seeking happiness and end up willing to accept whatever life hands them in that respect.
  • rolemodels true1 Positive role models: Sarah and Beth have a very close relationship, and the film shows how they manage to get along both in good times and when they're at odds with each other. But, must Sarah always be with a guy? The movie doesn't seem to explore the other obvious choice: being happy on your own.
What to watch for
  • violence false1 Violence: Emotional bickering between two sisters and between a couple that's breaking up. One very brief fist fight.
  • sex false4 Sexy stuff: Several sex scenes, some including suggestions of oral sex. No sensitive body parts are visible, but the sequences look and sound like real people having intimate encounters, including playful banter, energetic thrusting, and plenty of moans and groans. One man has a very obvious erection when he strips down to his boxers.
  • language false4 Language: Frequent swearing includes "f--k," "bitch," "d--k," and several variations of "s--t."
  • consumerism false2 Consumerism: A few characters use Mac laptops and sometimes drink Heineken beer.
  • drugsalcoholtobacco false4 Drinking, drugs and smoking: Many scenes show adult characters drinking -- at bars, at parties, at home -- and several people get quite drunk. While inebriated, some get wistful, some get hostile, and one woman falls asleep with her head on the bar. People make poor choices while under the influence, including dropping in unannounced on former lovers. A few scenes also show adults smoking pot.
An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.

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