Pulse: Critic Reviews

25%

MovieWeb: 2 reviews

10%

RottenTomatoes: 71 reviews

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Owen Gleiberman Entertainment Weekly (Top Critic)

34

It would have been a lot scarier if the film's college kids, haunted by comrades who stare back at them from cyber-hell, looked like they had lives worth saving.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Nathan Lee New York Times (Top Critic)

30

The American version of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's Pulse mimics the plot fundamentals, but lacks any traces of Mr. Kurosawas creepy minimalism and conceptual rigor.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Xan Brooks Guardian [UK] (Top Critic)

Full Review » 6 years ago
Stephen Hunter Washington Post (Top Critic)

The movie is far from great, but it certainly holds your attention.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Wesley Morris Boston Globe (Top Critic)

50

Like Naomi Watts and Sarah Michelle Gellar before her, Bell spends this Hollywood remake of a Japanese cult hit at an emotional dead end.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Scott Foundas Village Voice (Top Critic)

The J-horror remake wheel spins again, spitting out this pathetic Americanization of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's apocalyptic fable.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Jack Mathews New York Daily News (Top Critic)

25

Hideously ugly to look at and not even worth following.
Full Review » 6 years ago
J. R. Jones Chicago Reader (Top Critic)

The remake begins with the same premise and appropriates the most striking visuals, grafting them onto a more explicable but equally dull George Romero-style doomsday scenario.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Randy Cordova Arizona Republic (Top Critic)

40

A handful of creepy visuals can't make up for a mountain of shortcomings.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Robert Koehler Variety (Top Critic)

A dumbed-down remake of Kiyoshi Kurosawa's disturbingly abstract Japanese horror film.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Lou Lumenick New York Post (Top Critic)

25

Most contemporary Japanese horror movies concentrate on mood and don't much bother with plot. But this brain-dead remake is full of yammering about suicide clusters, flu epidemics and hard drives.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Roger Moore Orlando Sentinel (Top Critic)

20

Pulse is the remake of a 2001 J-horror film that was derivative and pokey, even before Hollywood got its hands on it.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Susan Walker Toronto Star (Top Critic)

63

Pulse is most cunning in its overarching theme: What Americans have to fear most are hidden dangers in their midst.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Jason Anderson Globe and Mail (Top Critic)

25

The Internet is trying to kill you. Your cellphone also seems to be nursing a serious grudge. They may both be conspiring with your Blackberry... and your TiVo... and possibly your washing machine.
Full Review » 6 years ago
James Berardinelli ReelViews (Top Critic)

25

Sitting through this movie is a joyless chore. Pulse doesn't have one.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Frank Scheck Hollywood Reporter (Top Critic)

This techno-themed horror film isn't nearly as scary as watching your computer crash.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Christy Lemire Associated Press (Top Critic)

It's intended as an indictment of our overdependence on communications devices, but the premise is out-of-this-world unbelievable.
Full Review » 6 years ago
Dave White Movies.com

40

Full Review » 1 year ago
Kit Bowen Hollywood.com

40

Full Review » 4 years ago
Deseret News, Salt Lake City

Full Review » 4 years ago
Jim Lane Sacramento News & Review

20

Full Review » 4 years ago
Jeff Shannon Seattle Times

Full Review » 5 years ago
Joe Lozito Big Picture Big Sound

25

Full Review » 5 years ago
Brian Tallerico UGO

The unanswered questions in the original added to the mood, but by trying to answer even just a few of them, this Pulse just gets more confusing and less scary.
Full Review » 5 years ago
Mark Palermo Coast (Halifax, Nova Scotia)

Boring youth movies are the result of boring youth characters.
Full Review » 5 years ago