Paper Tiger (2026) reviews

The Fuzzy Mushroom take on Paper Tiger

By Fuzzy Mushroom · Updated 12 November 2026 · The Pros 85 · The Punters 71 · Spore Score 82 · How we write our takes

Why The Pros rate it higher than The Punters

Paper Tiger is a film critics have embraced more than audiences so far. The Pros give it 85, The Punters 71, and the Spore Score is 82, with a mostly clear tag. That 14-point gap is typical of James Gray's films: critics have long admired his slow, serious, old-fashioned dramas, while general audiences tend to find them heavy going. Early audience numbers are also based on fewer ratings, so The Punters figure may move as the film opens wider.

What it is

James Gray wrote and directed this crime drama, his first film since Armageddon Time in 2022. It premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival in May 2026, and Neon is releasing it in the United States, starting in selected cinemas on 13 November 2026 before a wider release a week later. It is set in Queens, New York, in 1986. Miles Teller plays Irwin Pearl, an engineer, and Adam Driver plays his older brother Gary, a former police officer. The brothers chase a money-making scheme connected to cleaning up the Gowanus Canal, and it pulls them into the world of the Russian mob, putting Irwin's wife, played by Scarlett Johansson, and their two sons in danger.

What it does well

Gray is at home in this world. He grew up in Queens, and his films, from Little Odessa to We Own the Night, keep returning to New York families, crime and the pull between loyalty and ambition. Paper Tiger has the feel of a 1970s crime drama: patient, grown-up and more interested in a family under pressure than in shoot-outs. The three leads have a lot to play with, and Driver in particular gets a showy, unpredictable part.

Where The Punters have a point

This is not a fast thriller. It takes its time, the tone is bleak, and some viewers will find the plot strains belief as the brothers get in deeper. If you go in expecting a gangster film full of action, you may come out disappointed.

Who it is for

Fans of serious crime drama in the vein of The Godfather and Gray's own earlier films, and anyone who likes stories about families and money going wrong. Less suited to a casual night out.

The Fuzzy Mushroom verdict

Must-see, with a Spore Score of 82. A slow-burning, grown-up crime drama that critics clearly rate. Watch how The Punters figure moves as more people see it.