Brad Bird's ‘Ray Gunn' Gets Mixed-to-Positive Reviews at BFI London

This sucks. Brad Bird's “Ray Gunn” finally had its world premiere at the BFI London Film Festival tonight, and the reviews are in. The consensus? Mixed. Not a disaster, not a triumph.

Here's where the early reviews stand:

• The Guardian — 5/5

• Screen — Negative

• Next Best Picture — 8/10

• ScreenRant — 6/10

• IndieWire — B-

• Variety — Mixed

• THR — Negative

• Gizmodo — Mixed

• The Playlist — C

• The AV Club — C

• IGN— 8/10

The Guardian's rave and Next Best Picture's 8/10 are the outliers on the positive end. This isn’t the kind of reception I had hoped for from a filmmaker of Bird's caliber, especially with a project that carries this much history.

Bird hasn't directed a film in 8 years, and he bowed out of "Incredibles 3," which he's only writing, to make "Ray Gunn," a sci-fi noir passion project he's been trying to make for nearly 30 years. Just getting it made feels like a small miracle. Apple walked away from its deal with Skydance in 2024 partly because "Ray Gunn" was too expensive. Netflix ultimately stepped in, helming the $150M+ budget, and the expectation was that Bird, the man behind “The Iron Giant,” “The Incredibles” and “Ratatouille,” would deliver something special.

To be fair, I still look forward to seeing “Ray Gunn,” mixed reviews aren't a death sentence, and a film like this, steeped in 1940s retro noir sci-fi, isn’t for everyone. Bird's visual ambition should never be in doubt. That said, the film will probably not contend for the best animated feature Oscar, there have just been better received films this year — maybe a nomination is possible, especially with Bird being do well-respected within the branch.

The voice cast has Sam Rockwell playing the cynical titular detective. Scarlett Johansson plays the femme fatale singer Venus Nova, Bobby Cannavale is her gold-digging husband who hires Ray to spy on her, Tom Waits is the one-eyed alien sidekick Eye-ra, and Matt Berry voices a gangster named Slugsy. Bird voices two of Slugsy’s henchmen, Ben Burtt handles the sound design, and Michael Giacchino composed the score.

“Ray Gunn” will open in select theaters, including some 70mm screenings, on Friday, December 4 before streaming on Netflix on December 18.