Ellie Lucas From the Front Row Jul 7, 2019 2/4

This is standard Hallmark fare but to its credit it never tries to hide from that.

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Al Alexander The Patriot Ledger May 25, 2013 B+

Autism is a subject most filmmakers fear to broach, but not Aussie newcomer Elissa Down, she attacks the issue with honesty and passion.

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Anna King Time Out Nov 18, 2011 4/5

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Ben Kenigsberg Time Out Nov 17, 2011 2/5

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Mike Scott Times-Picayune Aug 14, 2009 2.5/4

It's a well-meaning film, marked by Luke Ford's sensitive portrayal of a disabled character. But the main character is bland, imparting the same vibe on the rest of the film.

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Christian Toto What Would Toto Watch? May 3, 2009 3/4

The Black Balloon is neither 'Rain Man' nor 'The Other Sister. This Aussie charmer charts its own course.

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Michael O'Sullivan Washington Post May 1, 2009

Thomas and Jackie's friendship, blossoming into a chaste romance, is the dramatic engine that powers The Black Balloon, but it's far from the most important relationship in the film.

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Alicia Potter Boston Phoenix Apr 23, 2009 3/4

Wakefield anchors the well-paced quieter moments.

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Walter V. Addiego San Francisco Chronicle Apr 17, 2009 3/4

The film's vision is neither a grim wallow nor falsely cheerful. It's compassionate but unblinking, and in the end we can't help but admire the genuine strength of how its characters accept their special challenge.

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Graham Killeen Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Apr 16, 2009 3/4

The Black Balloon is marked by the fiercest bravery you're likely to encounter on screen this year.

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Michael Phillips Chicago Tribune Apr 10, 2009 3/4

At its sharpest Elissa Down's feature directorial debut is guided by intense, rough-edged emotional swings that feel authentically alive, even when the script settles for tidiness.

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Roger Ebert Chicago Sun-Times Apr 10, 2009 3/4

The Black Balloon establishes this family with a delicate mixture of tenderness and pain.

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Kimberley Jones Austin Chronicle Apr 9, 2009 3.5/5

A film that mostly skirts artifice and sentimentality for a truer portrait of a family battered and bruised but nowhere near broken.

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Phil Villarreal Arizona Daily Star Apr 8, 2009 2.5/4

The outlines are broad and obvious, and Thomas such a bore, that The Black Balloon loses air.

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Ted Fry Seattle Times Apr 2, 2009 3/4

There are wrenching scenes that are brutally stark, yet there remains a steady sense of calm that is touching and sensitive without ever turning sentimental.

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Ty Burr Boston Globe Apr 2, 2009 3/4

Structurally and cinematically, The Black Balloon sticks to the coming-of-age basics, but [director] Down has a gift for conveying time and place.

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Stan Hall Oregonian Mar 6, 2009

It sometimes skirts melodrama territory, but the deep emotions ultimately are real and gratifying. Dependable Toni Collette keeps it grounded, disappearing into her role as the incredibly patient mother.

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Chris Hewitt St. Paul Pioneer Press Mar 6, 2009 2.5/4

Collette aside, there is no wow factor in The Black Balloon -- just a not-bad story told with better-than-average skill.

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Brian Tallerico Movie Retriever Mar 6, 2009

It's a film about a supposedly real-world set-up that never feels true, even though the people who made it clearly set out to treat their subject matter and the audience with respect.

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Shannon J. Harvey Sunday Times (Australia) Jan 12, 2009 4/5

It's brilliant; a beautifully balanced comedy-drama that makes you laugh as much as it makes you cry, sometimes in the same scene.

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