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The Thursday Murder Club is the latest Netflix release to receive solid word-of-mouth through its early Rotten Tomatoes score.
The film is a mystery thriller, directed by Chris Columbus (Home Alone, Mrs. Doubtfire), which brings together a stellar cast of Helen Mirren, Ben Kingsley, Pierce Brosnan, and Celia Imrie. They all play senior citizens living in a high-end retirement home, which can be a boring place if you have nothing keeping you busy.
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The same boredom leads them to start cracking cold cases, trying to find the culprits behind some dark and twisted affairs. Initially, it's all for fun and games so that they can make the most of their time, but it doesn't take long for their sleuthing skills to get them into trouble. That's the hook behind this new Netflix release, which premieres soon on the streamer.
Before its streaming release, the mystery thriller was released in select theaters on August 22. Shortly after, the early critics' verdict is out, and it seems to be a win for the team.
The Thursday Murder Club currently holds a 90% Rotten Tomatoes score, based on 21 reviews. This means that the film has received a 90% positive reception at the time of writing.
What are critics saying about The Thursday Murder Club?
The Thursday Murder Club is a murder mystery about veteran sleuthing aficionados trying to solve crimes during their time in a retirement home. Its official plot synopsis, per IMDb, reads,
"Four irrepressible retirees spend their time solving cold case murders for fun, but their casual sleuthing takes a thrilling turn when they find themselves with a real whodunit on their hands."
The project feels like a cross between shows like Only Murders in the Building and A Man on the Inside, and will hopefully capture the magic of both projects with its reliable cast. It's also an adaptation of a Richard Osmon novel, written by Katy Brand and Suzanne Heathcote. So, there was hope for it to live up to its promise.
The early RT score suggests the gamble has paid off handsomely. Peter Bradshaw from The Guardian gave it a positive review. His quote reads,
"Screenwriters Katy Brand and Suzanne Heathcote adapt the novel and director Chris Columbus robustly delivers the C-major chords of mainstream entertainment. The result is some undemanding enjoyment."
Other reviews have offered a largely mixed reaction to the movie. Nick Schager from The Daily Beast wrote,
"It won’t revolutionize the genre, and in fact would have benefited from considerable additional polish, but it’s just cute enough to warrant two hours of Netflix subscribers’ time."
Caryn James from The Hollywood Reporter said,
"This modestly entertaining film is uncool and filled with stock tropes, but it doesn’t pretend to be anything more."
Robbie Collin from The Daily Telegraph (UK) gave a negative review, saying,
"Perhaps due to these books’ extraordinary popularity,...such an adaptation was inevitable. Except no one could have foreseen that the result would be quite so thin and perfunctory; so nefariously lazy; so fiendishly pleased with itself."
The Thursday Murder Club will start streaming on Netflix from August 28, 2025.
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