After 15 years away from directing, “Ella McCay” marks the return of James L. Brooks—once a great filmmaker whose latest film has been outright panned by U.S. critics (23% on Rotten Tomatoes).
It came to the point where the film, now hitting VOD, had its January 7 release canceled in France by Disney. Maybe that was a bad idea…
Why was its French release canceled? Nobody really knows. But French critics and audiences, who love their auteur cinema, have always had a sweet spot for Brooks, and they’ve now been completely taken by “Ella McCay,” which is getting near-unanimous raves over there.
The film currently holds an astonishing 4.3/5 average rating on AlloCiné, France’s equivalent to Rotten Tomatoes, which is a high enough score to stand among the very best-reviewed films of the last several years. The only other major releases from last year that had the same score with the French were “One Battle After Another” (4.7), “The Secret Agent” (4.6) and “Sirat” (4.3).
We have Telerama giving ‘Ella’ its highest possible rating—calling it a “masterpiece”—and, much like Premiere’s review, comparing it to Frank Capra. Meanwhile, Liberation is praising it as a “wonderful comedy,” a “philosophical tale with melancholic questioning and sublime dialogue,” and “deeply moving.” The high-brow outlet Les Inrockuptibles proclaims it to be “James L. Brooks’ new masterpiece,” saying it’s one of the best American films of 2025, alongside “One Battle After Another.”
Finally, the legendary Cahiers du Cinéma have nothing but praise for the film, calling it a “harmonious delight,” and their writeup has been submitted as a 5-star review on AlloCine.
‘Ella’ grossed only $3M worldwide against a $35M budget. It was an outright bomb. The current aggregate tally stands at 23% on Rotten Tomatoes and 39 on Metacritic. Too bad French critics don’t count in these aggregates—their reviews could have significantly boosted these weak scores.
Brooks, the filmmaker behind “Terms of Endearment,” “As Good as It Gets,” and “Broadcast News,” wrote and directed the romantic comedy about a young politician (Emma Mackey) who rises to become her state’s governor while navigating the challenge of balancing her demanding career with her family life. The cast includes Rebecca Hall, Jamie Lee Curtis, Woody Harrelson, Ayo Edebiri, Albert Brooks, Kumail Nanjiani, Jack Lowden, and Spike Fearn.