Critics don’t always have the final say on a movie’s success, and a dark thriller that slipped under the radar when it was released in 2022 is now a Netflix streaming hit. Viewership data for the most recent week of streaming once again has KPop Demon Hunters topping the list of most popular movies on Netflix. Ranked alongside other movies like Karate Kids: Legends and 10 Things I Hate About You is a critically panned movie that viewers now can’t get enough of.
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Krystin Ver Linden’s directorial debut, Alice, started streaming on Netflix on September 30th and has already broken into the streamer’s Top 10 list. The movie stars Keke Palmer as an enslaved woman who escapes a 19th-century-style plantation in Georgia only to find herself in a post-civil rights era American South. The crime thriller, which only earned $373,000 during its limited theatrical release and holds a dismal 29% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes, has found newfound success on Netflix. According to Netflix’s streaming data for the week of September 29th-October 5th, Alice was the seventh most popular film in the United States. Exact viewership numbers haven’t been released.
Alice Is Better Than Its 29% Rotten Tomatoes Score
Alice’s current Netflix success comes as a surprise given the harsh response from critics. The movie was slammed as a “well-intentioned but unpromising debut” by The Hollywood Reporter’s John Defore, and RogerEbert.com‘s Odie Henderson described it as an “insultingly simplistic” film that is “so skittishly afraid to offend that it borders on parody.” But for all of its so-called faults, Alice is still a great movie, and critics still had some good things to say about it.
The movie features a compelling story that explores themes of slavery, modern empowerment, and revenge. Common Sense Media’s Monique Jones said Alice is a “surprisingly good film.” Although the film may not be everyone’s cup of tea, A Reel of One’s Own’s Andrea Thompson said that “for those who are willing to go with it, Alice will certainly be a satisfying ride.” According to Edward Douglas of The Weekend Warrior, “Once it gets off the plantation and gets to the real plot, it becomes something far more original and innovative.”
Where Alice really shines, though, is through Palmer’s performance, with critics almost unanimously agreeing that the actress delivers a compelling portrayal of a woman yearning for freedom and justice. Damon Wise wrote for Deadline that “Alice is consistently interesting, and Palmer has a lot to do with that, carrying the film with grace and simplicity in a part that could conceivably finished another actor altogether,” while Cinema Crazed’s Emilie Black said “the acting from lead Keke Palmer is powerful and on point.”
Alice, which holds a much better 60% audience rating, is now streaming on Netflix.
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