It's not even that the film shifts wildly in tone as much as the fact that none of those tones work at all: the horror parts aren't scary and, surprisingly for Smith, the comedy bits aren't funny.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
The sheer insanity of the premise alone is enough to make Tusk a surreal hoot.
There is a glee to the filmmaking that is matched by a greater sense of control than I've seen from Smith before, and while I think the film is wildly uneven at times, I think that's also the point.
At it’s best, Tusk is outlandishly unforgettable.
It suggests the worst possible gene splice of a barbed Terrance and Phillip South Park appearance, Fargo's blithe condescension, and the smuggest of Quentin Tarantino pastiches.
Despite its ludicrous turns, the movie benefits from the far-fetched events for its sheer willingness to go there, not unlike Smith's goofy, self-deprecating public persona.
The Hollywood Reporter by John DeFore
The picture is deeply weird, with an entrancement factor almost entirely dependent on the performance of Michael Parks.
There’s a fine horror film inside Tusk, but it’s only 20 minutes long. The rest is just blubber.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service by Roger Moore
In this not-even-faintly scary, rarely funny horror comedy, Smith is still sucking down big gulps of empty calories and hoping we’ll laugh at his belch.
An utterly bizarre, weirdly compelling story of manimal love that stakes out its own brazen path somewhere between “The Fly” and “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.”