The Wrap
“Mistress” is a brainy delight on its own terms, but the film also feels like an antidote to summer disappointments like “Vacation” (here’s a comedy that lets us feel for its characters while also laughing at their foibles) and “Irrational Man” (Gerwig and Baumbach are doing Woody Allen better than Woody is these days).
EW
Noah Baumbach’s latest wisp of privileged New York whimsy vaporizes on arrival. Nominally about the friendship that forms between a lonely college freshman (Lola Kirke) and her kooky future stepsister (co-writer Greta Gerwig, mugging like a millennial Auntie Mame), it’s mostly an excuse for characters to lob droll non sequiturs at each other and be steered toward strenuously madcap set pieces. Mistress hints at something sadder and more human, but settles for stylized mania instead.
Collider
There have been countless films made about youth and finding oneself in the world, but with Mistress America Baumbach continues to explore this relatable theme in a way that’s equal parts refreshing, familiar, and hilarious. Though the tonal shift is distracting, the film mostly works thanks to tremendous performances from Kirke and Gerwig and a whip-smart script that is filled to the brim with jokes on jokes.
