In Kyle Patrick Alvarez's funny adaptation of David Sedaris' essay, out actor Jonathan Groff channels a prideful sissy-boy on the verge of hilarious pratfalls...

| Jun 19, 2020

There are two other somewhat unrelated parts to C.O.G. - making the entire film inadvertently seem as if it exists as three largely unrelated stories with David as their only link.

| Sep 15, 2019

We should love these characters, but Alvarez hurries by them and doesn't give us much of a chance to get acquainted.

| Original Score: 6.7/10 | Apr 12, 2019

A promising sophomore effort from Easier with Practice writer/director Kyle Patrick Alvarez, and a great star turn for Jonathan Groff.

| Original Score: B | Feb 5, 2014

It feels deeply limited.

| Feb 4, 2014

It's not necessarily the events Sedaris describes that make his essays enjoyable; it's the words he uses to describe them. Without his voice, the story falls flat.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/5 | Oct 1, 2013

A coming-of age story with specific touches but a universal appeal.

| Original Score: B+ | Oct 1, 2013

The sardonic humor hits the mark more often than not, and Groff brings sympathy to an otherwise smug and pretentious character.

| Sep 30, 2013

This America takes some getting used to.

| Sep 26, 2013

Everyone in this wonderful surprise is looking for a place to belong while ultimately having to look out for No. 1. And I don't mean that in the spiritual sense.

| Original Score: 3.5/4 | Sep 23, 2013

I really wanted to like this film, being a fan of Sedaris' writing, of (screenwriter-director) Alvarez and of the great actors assembled here. Unfortunately, the screenplay lacks focus and is more often cruel than comedic.

| Original Score: C | Sep 21, 2013

Despite some good performances and sharp screenplay, C.O.G., like its lead character, seems stuck in the space between.

| Original Score: B- | Sep 20, 2013

Stale, flat and unprofitable might be how Shakespeare would have also described this uninvolving David Sedaris adaptation.

| Sep 20, 2013

Modest and good-looking, the film starts as dark comedy and ends in pathos. Director Alvarez makes the Oregon scenery a character unto itself.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/4 | Sep 20, 2013

People who approach it as a film in its own right, with its own rhythms and goals and pleasures, will be amply rewarded.

| Sep 20, 2013

Despite smatterings of wit and a stable of skilled performers, "C.O.G." struggles to find a consistent tone, its episodic structure veering from farcical to poignant to dangerously raw.

Full Review | Original Score: 2.5/5 | Sep 19, 2013

a dramedy that keeps you guessing where the main character is going (emotionally and physically) as he drifts from one odd situation to the next.

| Original Score: 3/4 | Sep 19, 2013

The film features snappy, hilarious bits among the coming-of-age vignettes, but it loses momentum as it winds toward a finish. You won't grow bored with the characters, but you might check your watch a few times.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Sep 19, 2013

For Sedaris fans, "C.O.G." is a regrettably patronizing washout.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Sep 19, 2013

"C.O.G" is like a collage of Americana from the perspective of someone incapable of comprehending its value.

| Original Score: B+ | Sep 19, 2013