Riding in Cars With Boys

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Riding in Cars With Boys

PG-13

2001

2h 12m

Comedy

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

48%

Tomatometer

107 Reviews

66%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

The fresh, funny, touching and true story of writer Beverly Donofrio (played by Drew Barrymore, who ages from 15 to 35 in the role), reveals her coming of age in the late 1960s and her whole life colored by an event that happened when she was 15. The events span more than two decades, as the young heroine experiences often-humorous, sometimes-irreverent, but certainly a unique personal journey to make something meaningful of her life.

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Critics Consensus

Riding in Cars With Boys suffers from mixing grit and pathos with cuteness and comedy. Ironically, many critics found Zahn's character more compelling and three-dimensional than Barrymore's.

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

12/28/2010

3/5

Not a great movie, although Drew Barrymore shines.

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Peter Rainer

New York Magazine/Vulture

01/22/2002

Beverly is supposed to be a bad girl running with the wrong crowd, but most of the time she seems to be right out of a serioso episode of Laverne & Shirley.

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Neil Smith

BBC.com

12/10/2001

3/5

The film belongs to Zahn, who turns his two-dimensional slacker character into a truly heartbreaking portrait of disillusion and guilt.

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Kit Bowen

Hollywood.com

11/20/2008

2/5

Bob Grimm

Sacramento News & Review

08/07/2008

3/5

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

04/24/2007

C-

Columbia's marketing exploits the commercial title and producer James Brooks pedigree, but this humorless chick flick is one of Penny Marshall's worst films.

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pappawatchesbaby T

@pappawatchesbaby Dec 23

Thank god Morgan Ward quit the business. What a donkey!

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Tim M

@tgmacman Sep 5

Drew Barrymore gives it her all, but Riding in Cars with Boys doesn't have the aptitude to support its weighty themes.

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Joyful Jadyn T

@joyfuljj 07/24/2025

One of the most moving and beautiful films I have ever seen. After I watched it, I couldn’t stop thinking about what would have happened if the characters lives went a different direction. I can’t believe the ratings for this film are so low — it was amazing. Beautiful movie

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Andrew B

@RT56354645 06/19/2025

Brittany Murphy brought the only joy to this movie, shining among an interesting but ultimately unlikeable cast of characters. While the film effectively portrayed the pain of regret, it dwelled too heavily on this theme. It was fascinating to see Drew Barrymore, typically known for her bright roles, take on such dark material. Though the opening scene was compelling, the movie failed to give its characters any meaningful development, leaving them stuck in a plateau of misery.

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thiago s

@Thiagostone 06/03/2025

Filme fraco, o roteiro é fraco, as cenas são fracas, a história é fraca, o elenco é fraco, e ninguém ajuda a melhorar o filme, os personagens são fracos, e o filme deveria ter cenas bem melhores e relevantes, para fazer o filme ser bom.

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Stern G

@RT02952475 04/07/2025

I adore this movie. I welcome the comedy with the pain of life’s circumstances. After all… it’s how we get through.

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Penny Marshall

Director

Drew Barrymore

Beverly Donofrio

Steve Zahn

Ray Hasek

Brittany Murphy

Fay Forrester

Adam Garcia

Jason (Age 20)

Lorraine Bracco

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Synopsis

The fresh, funny, touching and true story of writer Beverly Donofrio (played by Drew Barrymore, who ages from 15 to 35 in the role), reveals her coming of age in the late 1960s and her whole life colored by an event that happened when she was 15. The events span more than two decades, as the young heroine experiences often-humorous, sometimes-irreverent, but certainly a unique personal journey to make something meaningful of her life.

Director: Penny Marshall
Producer: James L. Brooks, Laurence Mark, Richard Sakai, Julie Ansell, Sara Colleton
Screenwriter: Beverly D'Onofrio, Morgan Ward
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Production Co: Flower Films, Parkway Productions, Gracie Films
Rating: PG-13 (Sexual Content|Drug Content|Thematic Elements)
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Oct 19, 2001, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 25, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $29.8M
Runtime: 2h 12m
Sound Mix: Dolby SR, DTS, Dolby Stereo, Surround, SDDS, Dolby A, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)