25
Christian Science Monitor by David Sterritt
How could such a high-octane cast produce such low-octane horror?
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
38
ReelViews by James Berardinelli
Godsend is godawful.
38
Charlotte Observer by Lawrence Toppman
De Niro wears a shamefaced look most of the time, as if doubly embarrassed: He agreed to a movie he knew was worthless, yet he's too lazy or indifferent to give us his best.
30
TV Guide Magazine by Maitland McDonagh
Despite its provocative premise, this throwback to deliberately paced, low-tech chillers of the pre-CGI era is a dreary slog through haunted-child movie cliches -- portentous dreams, glassy-eyed stares, cryptic pronouncements.
30
Los Angeles Times by Manohla Dargis
A consistently underused and often underrated actor, Kinnear gives one of those sympathetic performances that prevent you from believing the worst about a movie despite the sounding alarms.
30
Washington Post by Michael O'Sullivan
As the film's boo! moments get spookier and more frequent, Godsend gets more and more inane.
50
Entertainment Weekly by Owen Gleiberman
The umpteenth recycled shocker about a mystical dark child with an aura of disaster.
25
Miami Herald by Rene Rodriguez
An unsatisfying, overly restrained bore, capped off by an ending so strange and inconclusive, it feels like something you'd find on the ''deleted scenes'' portion of a DVD.
30
Kinnear and Romijn-Stamos appear to be vying for the title of filmdom's least-convincing married couple, while Robert De Niro, as the movie's modern-day Dr. Frankenstein, takes his own expert career slumming to a new depth -- he's become an evil clone of a once-great actor.
30
The Hollywood Reporter by Sheri Linden
This thin concoction of domestic drama and thriller suspense won't hold up after the curiosity factor runs its brief course. Neither Robert De Niro nor a phalanx of a dozen producers can deliver Godsend from unintentional comedy.