Ultimately, Pain Hustlers feels like a half-finished product, one that does manage to fully delve into the depths and complexities of the opioid epidemic in the United States.

| Original Score: 2.5/5 | Sep 14, 2024

There are compelling stories about the opioid crisis and ways to tell them. Sadly, Pain Hustlers lacks the conviction to assume the associated risks.

| Original Score: 5.5/10 | Jul 3, 2024

The biggest crime? They made Catherine O'Hara boring.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Jan 25, 2024

Pain Hustlers lacks the edge, bite and frenetic charm of Scorsese’s [The Wolf of Wall Street], as well as other similar films. It doesn’t hurt to watch, though, and is worth prescribing to others just for the performances of a committed cast.

| Dec 13, 2023

Emily Blunt and Chris Evans are both standouts in the film, though the film's premise delivers a fatigue in subject matter that at times leaves its existence in the film feeling hollow and never completely emotionally invested.

| Dec 9, 2023

Evans, Blunt, and Garcia do their best to lift up mediocre material, but the whole movie reeks of bloated Netflix production weight. Big names, little flavor, lack of sizzle.

| Dec 3, 2023

This true-life saga of capitalism run amok is neither as enlightening nor as infuriating as intended.

| Nov 24, 2023

Honestly, this plays like the movie all the actors made but decided to remove all references to it because they were so ashamed by the results.

| Original Score: 3/10 | Nov 22, 2023

Yates leans too heavily on cutesy timing, flimsy seriousness, and cliche. There are no fingerprints of an artist to be found, just a chunk of content to be lost in the algorithm, which isn’t such a bad thing when the film is absolute piffle.

| Original Score: 35/100 | Nov 19, 2023

The messaging is thorny, with a lighthearted, glib attitude that makes the film seem confused with its own intentions.

| Nov 12, 2023

Pain Hustlers is entertaining-enough, but there is a lack of focus that makes the story feel like one big missed opportunity. The buildup features great performances, but the finale is familiar and rushed. It lacks the style it strives for.

| Original Score: 5/10 | Nov 10, 2023

Emily Blunt can do no wrong. She is totally captivating in this timely film.

| Original Score: 7/10 | Nov 9, 2023

Unfortunately, the filmmakers let Blunt down by never quite nailing the tone of bemused outrage the material demands. Evans cops it even worse with a poorly written role as Liza’s cynical boss.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Nov 8, 2023

The morality tale that is Pain Hustlers shifts tones abruptly in its third act, where greedy and unethical characters get their comeuppance.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Nov 6, 2023

“Pain Hustlers” is overlong and at times frustratingly dull. But perhaps its biggest offense lies in its focus. The movie is so honed in on its disgustingly wealthy profiteers that the true victims (the people who actually died) barely have a voice.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Nov 6, 2023

Yates elicits compelling, commanding work from his leads that effectively elevates the proceedings on a recurring basis...

| Original Score: 3/4 | Nov 4, 2023

It's very entertaining but unfortunately somewhat morally bereft.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Nov 3, 2023

Pain Hustlers aims high and means well, but Yates directs this annoyingly untidy film like it’s The Wolf of Wall Street.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Nov 3, 2023

Even the energetic performance by the Brit actress Emily Blunt can't save this misfire.

| Original Score: C | Nov 3, 2023

Pain Hustlers tries really hard to build a hero, tear her down, and then rehabilitate her status, but to what end? The film ends up using the fentanyl crisis as a narrative drive, a highly dubious move when you're supposed to be spreading awareness.

| Original Score: 6.2/10 | Nov 2, 2023