84
Metascore
12 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100The New York TimesStephen HoldenThe New York TimesStephen HoldenScrupulously apolitical, The Waiting Room is the opposite of a polemic like Michael Moore's "Sicko." But by removing any editorial screen, it confronts you head-on with human suffering that a more humane and equitable system might help alleviate.
- 100San Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleSan Francisco ChronicleMick LaSalleThis is human drama at its most intense and universal. This is the rare film that can change the way you think and see the world.
- 91The A.V. ClubNathan RabinThe A.V. ClubNathan RabinDirector Peter Nicks puts faces, names, and heartbreakingly relatable stories to a social problem that can all too often feel abstract and academic.
- 80Boxoffice MagazineSara Maria VizcarrondoBoxoffice MagazineSara Maria VizcarrondoThere's more to it than a black-and-white political conclusion, and the laundry list of California documentary heroes in the credits suggests this film is humanist before it's agenda driven.
- 80SalonAndrew O'HehirSalonAndrew O'HehirThe Waiting Room is a source of both inspiration and hope. The system may be broken, but the people are not.
- 80The Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeThe Hollywood ReporterJohn DeForeInherently unpreachy but making its point more effectively than many participants in the debate can, the film should find vocal advocates in a niche theatrical run.
- 75Slant MagazineElise NakhnikianSlant MagazineElise NakhnikianDocuments emotionally charged interactions between patients and hospital staff without any signs that the subjects are being made to feel self-conscious or that they're behavior is being affected.
- 70Village VoiceVillage VoiceWhat makes The Waiting Room worth visiting is how well it does without the usual narcotizing documentary tactics.
- 70Los Angeles TimesRobert AbeleLos Angeles TimesRobert AbeleWherever you stand on healthcare and the fact that uninsured people nationwide use emergency rooms for basic services, the documentary The Waiting Room is a revealing portrait of the often tough transactions between patients and hospital staff at the urgency level.
- 60Time OutKeith UhlichTime OutKeith UhlichThe documentary's scope feels a bit small overall - more concerned with capturing the episodic adventures of these disparate subjects than with connecting their experiences to larger societal ills.