The film grossed $13,337,299 in the US and $5,059,083 in other markets for a total worldwide box office of $18,396,382. Critically, the film had a mixed reception.
Roger Ebert gave the film 3.5 out of a possible four stars. He wrote, for his review in the
Chicago Sun-Times, that
De-Lovely "...brings [...] a worldly sophistication that is rare in the movies".
Larry King said: "Far and away the best musical biography ever made." In his review in
The New York Times, Stephen Holden called the film "lethally inert" and "lifeless and drained of genuine
joie de vivre" and added, "It didn't have to be like this. In their highly stylized ways,
All That Jazz (
Bob Fosse's morbidly manic screen
autobiography),
Ken Russell's surreal portraits of composers or any of
Federico Fellini's libidinous self-explorations have delved deeply into the muck of artistic creativity. Sadly, the daring and imagination required to go below the surface are nowhere to be found in
De-Lovely." Ruthe Stein of the
San Francisco Chronicle said, "The movie never gels – despite Kline's nuanced performance, the stars' exquisite period clothes designed by
Armani, and, of course, Porter's great songs. Director Irwin Winkler's highly stylized technique is difficult to connect with emotionally. His film also suffers from shockingly sloppy editing for a studio production. If nothing else, the composer . . . deserves a movie that has rhythm. But
De- Lovely lurches along like a car with a missing spark plug." In
Rolling Stone,
Peter Travers rated the film three out of a possible four stars and commented, "In voice, manner, patrician charm and private torment, Kevin Kline is perfection as legendary composer Cole Porter . . . At its best,
De-Lovely evokes a time, a place and a sound with stylish wit and sophistication." Steve Persall of the
St. Petersburg Times graded the film C− and observed, "The movie is actually an ugly compilation of clashing cinematic styles occasionally salvaged by musical numbers that essentially are part of the problem. You can't make a good movie about a 1930s composer using a 1970s film conceit while hiring 21st century recording artists to perform Porter's classic songs. A tribute CD, maybe, but not a movie . . . [it] plays like a cabaret review rather than a motion picture, a sublime collection of songs linked by scripted banter barely scratching the surface of its subject. Not delightful, not delicious, just disappointing."
Billboard reported that the film "has inspired a Cole Porter renaissance on Top Jazz albums". By the end of July 2004, the film's soundtrack reached 4–3 on Top Soundtracks and 77–58 on The Billboard 200. The film also boosted chart numbers for the then-recently released compilations albums:
The Very Best of Cole Porter,
Ultra Lounge: Cocktails With Cole Porter, and ''
It's De Lovely - The Authentic Cole Porter Collection''. ==Awards and nominations==