Castle Rock offers more than nostalgic horror; it shows the horrific nature of nostalgia.
I can’t tell if the new season is over-reaching, under-reaching or if the Annie Wilkes of it all is just overshadowing the story to an unanti...
The actors will offer the best incentive for the King-ambivalent to tune into Castle Rock, but I’m not sure even they will ultimately be enou...
The Verge October 25, 2019 Castle Rock remains an atmospheric, grippingly acted series that captures the feeling of King’s fiction while exploring corners of his world...
New York Times July 24, 2018 You’ve heard the phrase, "The location is a character"? Here, the town of Castle Rock is an ungenerous co-star, elbowing out its colleag...
Observer September 12, 2018 For a purposely misleading series that prided itself on all its enigmas, Castle Rock answered its major questions in unexpected and impressive...
TIME Magazine July 20, 2018 All the usual components of a King story are here: religious dogma, abuses of power, creepy kids, psychic abilities. But Castle Rock sets itse...
The closer Castle Rock hits to home, the scarier it gets, and the show is full of very true-to-life horrors.
Globe and Mail July 25, 2018 The series is first-rate entertainment while never trying to reach for great seriousness.
Mr. Holland gives an appropriately layered portrayal of an off-balance character.
Salon.com October 24, 2019 [Lizzie] Caplan, is unsettlingly good as Annie, giving a performance that can be emotionally poignant in one scene and petrifying in another...
Starts slow and gets better – while an excellent cast (and lead, in Holland) front a story that’s a little more psychological than...
The show makes skillful use of its episodic medium, carefully pacing its storylines and building out its world while still making sure each hour is...
The show starts getting good around episode three, once it cuts back on the direct King swipes and becomes more like a wholly original novel...
Vanity Fair July 25, 2018 But disappointingly, Castle Rock is much less of a studied character drama set in the Stephen King universe than it is an extended homage to a...
Name-checking and drawing inspiration from various King works, the J.J. Abrams-produced show boasts a gaudy cast, but proves enamored with atm...
There is perhaps an advantage in starting fresh.
When it comes to Castle Rock itself, however, the final product of such an effort can ring a little hollow, like a remastered greatest hits al...
Though its eerie aesthetics are far from daring, it delivers routinely suspenseful revelations and set pieces even as it takes its creeping-death t...
[Caplan’s] performance is masterfully physical, from her carefully impassive smile to the way she holds her arms stiffly at her sides as she...
Castle Rock is a fresh take on an ages old trepidation, sharing the perpetual state of low-grade fright experienced by a number of people.
RogerEbert.com December 3, 2019 A lot of horror anthologies hinge on concept instead of character or performance, but I’m happy to see "Castle Rock" bucking that trend.
There are just a few too many King Easter eggs for the uninitiated to grasp, and not enough of King’s trademark storytelling to grip you...
Boston Globe July 19, 2018 "Castle Rock" is a giant basket of Easter eggs for King people, but for the rest of us it’s a decent show layered with superna...
[It’s] smart, fun scares; deeply felt, well-founded characters; layers of story to decipher, along with the references – what more could...
Castle Rock will surely attract some die-hards, but, sketchily unfocused on the human scale, it is surprisingly inhospitable to casual visitors.
The lead performances are so consistently thoughtful – Holland’s and Lynskey’s especially – that when the supernatural inevit...
The plenitude of incident creates an effect more like dilution than density, and it’s hard to see the trees for the forest of allusion. Castl...
Slant Magazine July 19, 2018 Castle Rock is a generically gloomy small-town mystery that doesn’t lack for allusions to Stephen King’s past work.
Toronto Star August 2, 2018 I’ve enjoyed my share of King’s work, and I’m gripped by Castle Rock. But I find his Evil… Easy. In its simplicity, it&rsquo...
indieWire October 23, 2019 What’s here is still effective, affecting, and original – despite appearances.
Slant Magazine October 23, 2019 There’s little apparent benefit to how the show’s second season foregrounds its interpersonal relationships.
Rolling Stone July 24, 2018 The King allusions turn into treats for those who recognize them rather than distracting reminders of classics this newcomer can’t hope to li...
RogerEbert.com July 24, 2018 When it tries to be a wonderland for King fans, it races past the line of referential, rounds through fan service, and steps into cliché, some...
