New York Times
"...The music may be perfectly awful -- actually it is both perfect and awful -- but its power, this movie suggest is nothing to laugh at. Or so you might realize, if you could only stop laughing long enough to form the thought..." 04/16/2003 p.E1USA Today
"...The satire is so deadpan that you sometimes have to pinch yourself to realize how dead-on it is....The unmatchable Fred Willard tears it up..." 04/18/2003 p.13D Rolling Stone
"...A gift from comedy heaven..." 05/01/2003 p.64 Variety
"...The gifted repertory company again creates an amusing gallery of incisively observed characters, riffing off each other with enjoyment levels that frequently prove contagious..." 04/14/2003 p.19-31 Entertainment Weekly
"...[A] sublime, dizzying satire of American folk music....A movie that re-creates its object of satire with such pitch perfect flair that all but erases the line between derision and love..." 04/25/2003 p.123 Premiere
"...There is plenty of top-flight comedy in this brisk picture..." 05/01/2003 p.18-19 Box Office
...[With] the same blend of serious musicality and unabashed silliness that the trio injected into their metal tunes for THIS IS SPINAL TAP, gently ribbing their chosen musical form even as they pay it loving homage..." 06/01/2003 p.60 Los Angeles Times
"...Few filmmakers today can show us our most ridiculous selves with as much merciless wit and tender mercy..." 04/16/2003 p.C1 Movieline's Hollywood Life
"...Hilarious..." 09/01/2003 p.118 Sight and Sound
"[T]he filmmakers have an obvious knowledge of and affection for the music, creating a rich game of reference-spotting for the folk cognoscenti." 02/01/2004 p.54 Uncut
"Affectionate, often very funny....[With] typically irresistible performances." 07/01/2004 p.139 Chicago Sun-Times 6 of 10
There were many times when I laughed during A Mighty Wind (not least at lines like, "the kind of infectious that it's good to spread around"). But the edge is missing from Guest's usual style. Maybe it's because his targets are, after all, so harmless. The deluded Spinal Tap and the ferocious dog owners in Best in Show want to succeed and prevail. The singers in A Mighty Wind are grateful to be remembered, and as we watch them, we cut them the kind of slack we often do for aging comeback acts. Hey, the Beach Boys may be old, fat and neurotic, but we don't want to spoil the fun by taking their T-Bird away. - Roger Ebert
James Berardinelli's ReelViews 7 of 10
Those with an appreciation of Guest's previous work-This Is Spinal Tap, Waiting for Guffman, and Best in Show-will likely enjoy A Mighty Wind. The movie probably isn't for those who define a comedy as a series of fart jokes and gross-out gags. However, although Guest rarely descends into the realm of low-brow humor, neither does he inhabit a plane of intellectual snobbery. A Mighty Wind is another affectionate parody - one that delights in gently poking fun at its subject rather than tearing it to pieces - with plenty of amusing moments and one-liners that vary from lily white to off-color. And, despite not being a laugh-a-minute riot, it's nevertheless one of the most consistent comedies to reach theaters thus far this year. - James Berardinelli
San Francisco Examiner 7 of 10
Surprisingly, though, Guest manages to squeeze a few moments of genuine poignancy out of the Levy and O'Hara sequences. It should be noted that Levy, who co-wrote the screenplay with Guest, turns in an outstanding performance as the shell-shocked Mitch, who barely looks like he can dress himself but still knows how to touch the heart. It's nice to know that actual comedians are still at work in this world of reality shows and idiot humor. In this barren landscape, we have to regard A Mighty Wind more with affection than with disappointment. - Jeffrey M. Anderson
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