Overall, Phantom Boy doesn't have the dense thematic complexity that many animated films have gone for since Pixar became the industry standard but it is a simply enjoyable alternative.

| Jan 5, 2021

Charming and inventive yet modest and unpretentious.

| Original Score: 3.5/5 | Apr 1, 2019

Phantom Boy is a visual delight but also a throwback to a simple superhero story before cinematic universes changed everything.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Feb 6, 2019

Leo's unnerving ability to dance between reality and waking life gives the film a metaphysical tone, yet it's riddled with comedic bits that lighten the mood.

| Aug 22, 2018

Their quarry is a villain known only as the Man with the Broken Face, a handle that makes sense once you soak in the Picasso-like renderings of these characters, who exist in a different, hand-drawn realm to Pixar's digital might.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Jan 1, 2018

Despite all its whimsy, Phantom Boy manages to cater entirely to children without feeling patronizing. What kid doesn't love the idea of a child hero?

| Aug 8, 2017

Phantom Boy is simply drawn -- no computer images here-and frequently funny, whether it's the bumbling cohorts of the villain or a couple of scenes that parody The Sopranos.

| Jan 2, 2017

It's one of the best not-just-for-children animations in theaters this summer -- an action-packed, yet kind-hearted adventure featuring an ailing kid who doubles, in his imagination, as an invisible flying hero.

| Dec 28, 2016

Though the narrative follows a standard beat, it is enjoyably told and features many amusing characters.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Nov 4, 2016

Alas, the storytelling remains one-dimensional.

| Oct 21, 2016

It has an interesting premise and seems to be about the dark subject of death and childhood, but then backs out nervously towards cops'n'robbers banality.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Oct 21, 2016

For those willing to make allowances, there's a definite artisanal personality to the visual style, and an undertow of emotion as the boy's unknowing family fear they'll lose him forever.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 20, 2016

It's an entertaining romp, which for me had weird, engaging echoes with Richard Linklater's Waking Life.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 20, 2016

Noirish touches flesh out the wispy plot, yet it's the old-school animation that engages most: lending clarity to the emotions at stake, ensuring our sickly hero's resilience tugs on the heart.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 19, 2016

Frequently beautiful to look at, but the cops-and-robbers angle feels tired.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 18, 2016

While not for everyone, this old-fashioned adventure with a fresh twist may gain a cult following of those interested in how two French directors challenge the cookie-cutter narrative of most animations.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 17, 2016

There is more than enough for the adults in the audience to bite off and chew - perhaps one or two will find it hard to fight back the tears at times, as well as the chortles which will undoubtedly escape on occasion.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Oct 16, 2016

Gagnol's thin screenplay gives the animation little to latch onto, and the whole enterprise fades into nothingness.

| Original Score: 2/4 | Sep 8, 2016

The movie is simple, small and exudes a certain throwback charm.

| Original Score: B | Jul 31, 2016

Missing is the narrative and emotional cohesiveness that would likely have led to [Phantom Boy] being [more] engaging and memorable.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Jul 29, 2016