66
Metascore
15 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 90VarietyVarietyA solidly crafted depiction of some current big-city horrors and succeeds largely because of the Robert Duvall-Sean Penn teaming as frontline cops.
- 80The New RepublicStanley KauffmannThe New RepublicStanley KauffmannBut conventional though the patterns are, the dialogue, in black and Latino lingo, is topically hot and is heated further by contemporary street naturalism, which in fact is less "natural" than consciously theatrical; so the familiarity of the story is disguised by the crackle of the production. [16 May 1988]
- 75San Francisco ChronicleSan Francisco ChronicleThe only scene that takes a stab at saying something about the root causes of the violence is the weakest. At a poorly attended community meeting called by the police to urge residents to speak up when they witness a crime, one black Vietnam veteran angrily mentions the lack of jobs. [15 Apr 1988]
- 75Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertA special movie - not just a police thriller, but a movie that has researched gangs and given some thought to what it wants to say about them.
- 75Christian Science MonitorDavid SterrittChristian Science MonitorDavid SterrittThere's hardly an original shot in the picture, and the screenplay ignores all opportunities to explore the patterns of poverty and racism that contribute to mob behavior. [22 Apr 1988]
- 70The New York TimesJanet MaslinThe New York TimesJanet MaslinThough it all comes together, most tragically, at the conclusion, Colors is less notable for its plot than for its chilling urgency and its sense of pure style.
- 60Chicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumChicago ReaderJonathan RosenbaumNarrative continuity and momentum have never been among Hopper's strong points, and this time the choppiness of the storytelling diffuses the dramatic impact without offering a shapely mosaic effect (as in [his] previous films) to compensate for it.
- 60Washington PostWashington PostThe movie lacks a sure sense of purpose and direction, and, watching it, you can't help but feel that Hopper, by stepping back and refusing to assert his own point of view, has on some essential level abdicated his responsibility as a director. [15 Apr 1988]
- 50TV Guide MagazineTV Guide MagazineColors has a tentative, ambivalent feel to it--as if Hopper merely considered himself a hired gun who should avoid imposing too personal a vision on the material.
- 30Los Angeles TimesSheila BensonLos Angeles TimesSheila BensonWithout complexity to its characters, with little balance and without a hint of the personal, family or community issues involved, Colors becomes a movie that never has to ask "Why?"--a vivid, noisy shell of a film filled with eager young actors rattling along on the surface of a lethally important subject. [15 Apr 1988]