By the time a disillusioned, grimly deflowered Beth leaves for school wearing her ex-friend's "I Put Out" T-shirt, tonal whiplash has eaten up the pleasures of this otherwise well-cast, evocatively shot small-town trifle.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
Entertainment Weekly by Adam Markovitz
Trite lessons are learned. Plotlines play out in familiar arcs. A few blips of sex and drug use aim to make the movie feel more grown-up. Instead, they make it off-limits to the only age group likely to find any charm in its smug Britcom cutesiness.
Slant Magazine by Andrew Schenker
Albatross is simply a compendium of bad ideas.
Innocence is lost - as well as 90 minutes of your precious, precious time.
New York Daily News by Elizabeth Weitzman
Albatross is the kind of movie that looks good, begins with promise, and then nosedives into deep disappointment.
It's a shame that the film comes across like an awkward and ingratiating teenager, given that the two performances at its core are so winning.
The New York Times by Jeannette Catsoulis
Niall MacCormick's direction, while unfocused, locates a sweet center in the bonding of the two young girls, effortlessly capturing the way unexpected friendship, like first love, can completely alter the look of the world.
The performances are compelling (although Jones is underused) but the thin narrative is less instructive of the strange way female friendships operate than of the way stories get recycled.